A Dark Hour
by Matthew G Given
Summary: AU Castle has been shot. Beckett is on the verge of a break down. The team is in trouble. Enemies are closing in. This is indeed a dark hour. First chapter is a little slow because it is all set up but after that it will pick up,I promise.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer:I do not own Castle. All rights belong to ABC and Andrew Marlowe. I am not making any money off of this.

**A Dark Hour**

**Chapter 1**

Detective Kate Beckett felt an overwhelming mix of emotions as she stepped up to the podium in her dress uniform and began her speech. She was full of sorrow because her captain the man who had been like a father to her when her own father had been too lost in grief and drink to be there for her was dead. She was angry because he had betrayed her,but he had died making it right and she wasn't about to punish his family or undo all the good he had done by talking about the one mistake he had made, she would take Mongemory's secret to the grave. She was frustrated because once again she found herself surrounded by death and without a single lead. Once again the search for her mother's killer had just led to more death and no answers. She was depressed and angry with herself because she nearly had to face this latest tragedy in her life alone and it was only because the man who was with her today was the most forgiving person she had ever met that she wasn't.

It was all her fault too so some of the anger she felt was directed at herself. She had been so angry last week that when he had accused her of hiding in relationships with men she didn't love she didn't have the guts to tell him that not only was he right but the man she had been hiding with had called her on it two days before. Her mind briefly went back to that conversation and the pain she felt when Josh spoke.

"_You don't love me." _He had said with sadness in his eyes. _"I can tell. I think I love you but it can't be a one way street or it will not work. You are just hiding with me and you need me to change who I am and not go off to help people any more. Maybe I could bring myself to do that for someone who could love me back but I think we both know that will never be you. The only person you are in love with is the man you spend most of your time talking about. You have been using me to hide from him and I don't know why. I only know I can't do this any more so goodby Kate." _Then the door had closed behind him and she knew she should feel angry and depressed but instead she was just numb and shocked. She hadn't said anything and now that she was thinking about it she knew why,she had known he was right. Still she was too proud to admit it so when she had been called out on it two days later instead of admitting it to herself and talking to the man she was really in love with she had kicked him out of her life forever. Yet he had still showed up and saved her life and he was her by her side at the moment she needed him.

She had been unfair to him,she saw that now. She now knew there was no way he would leave her on his own and yet she hadn't pushed him away, instead she had spent more time than ever with him while at the same time dating someone else and making it clear that she would run if he ever told her how he felt. Not that he hadn't made it clear with his actions,everyone including her could see that but she was afraid that if she let him in she would be hurt,he would see who she really was and drop her. So she kept him on the outside but that had not been fair because she now saw that she had been accepting support from him while not giving him any real support from herself. She now saw that she had to make it right. There were no guarantees in life and she couldn't waste any more of hers or his with her indecision,she had to talk to him after the funeral and decide what they were going to do. She wasn't sure what she would choose but as she thought about the words of her captain she had a pretty good idea. He was right she was lucky to have found someone who would stand by her and never leave and she flashed him a sad smile at that moment,trying to let him know that she knew she was wrong when she kicked him out. She was scared but she had just about decided she was done letting fear run her life. The next thing she knew she felt a heavy weight slam into her side hard and she felt herself hit the grass.

"Castle,what the Hell?!" Beckett yelled at the man who's full body weight was on top of her,but he didn't respond. She dimly became aware that people were screaming just outside of her field of view which was mostly taken up by the form of Castle who was on top of her. She needed to know what was going on so she gathered all of her strength and pushed Castle off of her and onto his back,this finally got a reaction out of him he cried out in pain and Beckett looked down at him. Castle's eyes were clenched shut and a look of pure agony was plastered across his face but Beckett still was not sure why,that is when she looked down and saw it. Blood seeping out from Castle's lower back and onto the grass. He had bee shot, that had been the crack she had heard a split second before he hit her, it was a gunshot and Castle had taken the bullet for her.

"Call an ambulance,Castle's been shot!" She yelled out to Ryan who she had just seen out of the corner of her eye running with his service weapon drawn in the direction of Castle's family. Castle's family, Martha and Alexis. Alexis had just seen her father shot! Suddenly it all became too real for Beckett and she started to lose control,Alexis was even younger then she had been when she had lost her own mother and she had not had to watch it happen. Beckett knew that she couldn't be responsible for Alexis losing her father, she needed Castle to live so she pulled herself together and focused on making sure that happened. She reached behind Castle with her right hand and began feeling around, Castle winced in pain again but she didn't stop,finally she found the wound and began pressing on it as hard as she could.

"Castle,I need you to stay with me." Beckett pleaded looking down at him but his eyes had already started to glaze over and roll back in his head due to the pain and blood loss. "Hang in there!' Beckett almost yelled and that seemed to get his attention and with a great effort he opened his eyes.

"Kate,I love you." He said in a harsh whisper that sent a shock through Beckett's entire body. What did he only have the guts to say that now?! Beckett thought to herself angrily but before she could continue that line of thought he spoke again. "Take care of Alexis."

This snapped Beckett out of her thoughts and a single tear began running down her face. "I will not have to because you are going to be here" She said in a stern commanding tone. "You just need to hold on,your daughter needs you." However it was too late he had slipped away and passed out. He was still breathing but despite Beckett's best efforts she could not wake him up. She sat there on the ground looking down at Castle until she felt someone put a hand on her left shoulder and trying to make her let go,at first she tried to fight the unknown person off but then she heard a voice.

"Kate you need to move and let the paramedics get to work" The voice belonged to her best friend and she knew what she said made sense so she reluctantly stood up. She watched the paramedics apply first aid and lift Castle onto a gurney and push him into an ambulance. Beckett held back the tears but she did turn around and look at her best friend.

"I know,I know." Lanie said her eyes full of understanding and then she took hold of Beckett's left hand which was not covered in blood and began leading her towards where they had parked. "Come on lets go to the hospital,we will know more once we get there." Beckett was too numb to talk and all she could do was follow Lanie,she was completely overwhelmed.

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Everything was chaos when they got to the emergency room,it was filled not only with them and other people but the press hand gotten a hold of the news and were pushing their way in. When they got in Alexis' face and tried to get a statement from the highschool girl who was reeling from the day's events Esposito snapped and got into a shoving match with a reporter that could have ended up on the six o'clock news if it were not for Beckett's clear thinking, suddenly she was snapped out of her distance. Epsosito was still on her team and it was her job to keep her team out of trouble, this was something she could handle. Beckett stepped in between Epsosito and the reporter and while it took all of her effort and control she kept her voice calm.

"Listen how do you think it will make your station look when it comes out that you harassed a minor to get better ratings?" Beckett asked.

"The people have a right to know." the female reporter who was standing beside the camera man objected.

"This isn't about the people, it's about your ratings." Beckett replied fixing the reporter with an angry look. "You have no right to harass a minor and if you don't leave you will be facing a lawsuit from the family of Richard Castle,is that how you really want this to play out?!" She challenged.

The reporter seemed to consider this for a moment and then think better of her tactics but she was too proud to admit defeat. "We will be outside the hospital waiting for updates." She finally said and she turned and left with her camera man.

After this Beckett found a nurse and had everyone taken to a private waiting room for VIPs,she was grateful to have something productive to do while they all waited for an update on Castle's condition. After a few minutes in the private waiting room Esposito got a call that he left the room to take and when he came back five minutes later Beckett could tell it was about the case. She called Esposito and Ryan back to a corner of the waiting room to speak to them. They talked in hushed tones so as not to disturb Martha and Alexis who were sitting in chairs at the other end of the room holding hands.

"Was that about the case?" Beckett asked.

"Yeah it was." came Esposito's reply.

"Why the hell wasn't I called, I am lead detective?!" Beckett demanded angrily.

"They said they tried to get a hold of you but you didn't answer." Esposito answered calmly refusing to become upset with Beckett over how terse she had been. He knew she wasn't really angry at him.

This news shocked Beckett since she was sure her phone had not rung, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone to check for missed calls but found that the screen was cracked and broken. It didn't take a detective to figure out that it must have happened when Castle knocked her to the ground saving her life. She almost cried at this reminder of the day's events but she held back the tears,crying would not help anyone,good police work would and if there was one thing she knew it was good police work. "So please tell me we got the bastard." Beckett said when she finally spoke.

Esposito shook his head sadly. "Sorry all we have is a rifle without any prints or serial numbers on it. Our only lead is that it looks military issue. The shooter is in the wind."

Becket was too shocked to speak but Ryan spoke up,his voice bringing home the full frustration that he felt. "How could that happen with all those cops there?"

"Only one way that I can think of,the shooter must have been a pro. Most likely ex military special forces of some kind." Epsosito answered grimly.

"There has to be some way to trace him. Let's assume he is ex military and look for clues on the rifle besides prints and serial numbers. I want the lab to go over it with a fine tooth comb for anything that can tell us where it came from." Beckett said taking charge,she would not be defeated on this case.

"Right boss we will look into it,you should stay here." Esposito said. Beckett was about to object but then she remembered the promise she had made to Castle months ago and his last words to her,he had asked her to look after Alexis and while she wasn't sure what she could do for the girl she wasn't about to break her promise. She could trust Ryan and Esposito to look after the case for a few hours,still she couldn't bring her self to speak so all she did was nod sadly.

"Keep us updated." Ryan said as he and Esposito turned and left the waiting room. They had work to do.

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It was about an hour later when a doctor finally entered the waiting room. He was a tall man who stood just over six feet,he was overweight,had thick curly blond hair,and spoke with a British accent.

"Family of Richard Castle?" The doctor asked.

"That's us." Martha said standing up and walking toward the doctor. "I am Martha Rodgers his mother,this is Alexis Castle his daughter,and that is detective Beckett his partner from the 12th precinct." Martha said introducing everyone.

"I think I should speak to you privately, since this news is really only for the family." The doctor said unsure of himself.

"Anything you have to said to me you can say to these two, I will just have to explain it to them myself later so it's better if you just tell us all at once." Martha explained.

"Very well." the doctor said with a sigh. "I am Doctor Baker and I am in charge of Mister Castle's case. I am sorry I could not give you an update sooner but we needed to get him stable."

"How bad is it?" Alexis asked with her voice just above a whisper.

"It would be wrong for me to make light of how bad things are but you should know we believe he is out of the woods and he will live." This prompted a sigh of relief from everyone in the room. "Still he is in grave condition." Doctor Baker added. "He will need multiple surgeries over the next few days and you should be prepared to take care of him in the long term."

"What do you mean,what happened to him?" Beckett asked shocked.

"Please sit down and remember that the good news is that he made it, hang on to that." Doctor Baker said as he motioned for everyone to sit and they did so. He spoke gently but firmly. "The bullet shattered on the lower part of Mister Castle's spinal cord and we will not be able to tell the full extend of the damage until we finish all the surgeries and he wakes up and we are able to run some tests but you should prepare yourselves for the fact that in the best case he will have mobility issues for the rest of his life."

"And in the worst case" Martha asked as the colour drained from her face.

Doctor Baker then got a sad look in his eyes as he spoke. "In the worst case he will be unable to use his legs and be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life." The room fell silent for a moment and everyone had the same thoughts,they could not imagine Rick Castle not being able to run all over town and play laser tag,the thought of him in a wheelchair for the next forty or so years was just too much to bear. "I am so sorry and I wish I had better news and right now I need to get back to work but if you have any questions feel free to call me." Martha nodded and Doctor Baker then stood up and left the three women in the room in a state of complete and utter shock.

Beckett had to do something so she stood up and started pacing,she had gone back and forth across the room three and a half times when she turned around and came face to face with Alexis who's face was bright red.

"This is all your fault!" Alexis yelled,Beckett had never seen her like this before and didn't know how to react so she just stood there unable to look Alexis in the face. "That bullet was meant for you. If you had just told him you were not interested,Stopped him from following you,or just stopped digging into cases like this none of this would have happened! It's bad enough my mother doesn't want anything to do with me,but now I am going to lose my father and I will be alone!" Alexis screamed tears pouring down her face and still Beckett couldn't bring herself to say or do anything,she was frozen in place.

"Alexis!" Martha scolded,coming up behind her granddaughter but before she could say anything else Alexis stormed out of the waiting room.

Beckett then looked down at her gloved right hand and then remembered for the first time that she had not removed the glove that was covered with Richard Castle's blood,suddenly it all became too much for her. Beckett's legs gave out and she slumped against the wall and began to cry. Alexis was right she had destroyed a family and she didn't know what she could do to fix things. She wanted to run but she couldn't move so all she did was sit there with her head on her knees and cry. This was the worst she had felt since he mother had died and she couldn't see how it could get better and little did she know it was about to get worse.

**Okay I know I should be working on some of the stories I have not update in over a year but this idea came to me in the shower and I had to get it down. I know there are a lot of season four AU out there so I am not sure anyone will like this one and I am not sure how good a job I did on it. I would just like to say that I am sorry for not updating in so long and I am grateful to anyone who is still reading my stuff. I feel I should explain. I have a metal condition that makes writing when I am off my meds very hard and for the past two years I have not been able to get my meds and I had a bit of a break down and wasn't able to write. That is the bad news,the good news is I am back on my meds so regular updates for this and other stories will be coming again. Sorry to keep you all waiting.**

**Remember that I rely on feedback from all of you to improve my writing so please leave a review and let me know if this story was any good and if you want to see it continue.**

**Thanks a bunch for reading,as always you people are the best.**

**Thanks again to Casketfan5 for beta help. You are the best.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Kate Beckett was awakened by a voice,as the cobwebs slowly began to clear from her head she became dimly aware of a dull ache in her neck and back,it took her a few seconds to work out that she must have cried herself to sleep on the floor of the hospital waiting room and that it wasn't the most comfortable place in the world to sleep. Just as she was working this out she heard the voice again and looked up to see it coming from the last person in the world she would expect.

"I figured you could use some coffee." Alexis Castle said looking down at her,she had two disposable coffee cups in her hand and she held out one to the detective. To say that Beckett was shocked would have been an understatement,the last time she had seen Alexis she was sure the young woman hated her and blamed her for getting her father shot,but now here she was offering her coffee, Beckett wasn't sure what to make of this but she straightened herself into a sitting position and gratefully took the cup. Beckett looked around the room and noted that other then the fact that Martha had a fallen asleep in a plastic chair on the other side of the room and the fact that the skylight seemed to indicate that it was dark outside,not much had changed since she had sat down on the floor.

Beckett took a few sips of coffee and when she decided to speak she chose a neutral topic,not wanting to push Alexis after everything the girl had been through. "How long was I asleep?" She asked.

"I think about five hours." Alexis replied sitting down beside the detective.

"Oh." Was Beckett's only response as she took another sip of her coffee,trying to wake up and come to terms with the day's events at the same time.

"Listen detective." Alexis said and Beckett turned to face the girl and when she did she saw that the redhead's eyes had a sad look in them that she would do anything to take away,she wanted to put the girl at ease so she interrupted her. "Please just call me Kate." she said with a warm smile.

"Okay,Kate." Alexis said as if she was trying it out to see if it felt right and then she continued. "I am so sorry for what I said earlier. I shouldn't have lashed out at you. I know you didn't ask for any of this to happen and I know my dad made his own choices that you have no control over. None of this is your fault and you don't need me laying a guilt trip on you. I don't know why I did it but I hope you can forgive me." Alexis then turned her face away as if she was ashamed of herself and looked down at the floor.

"There is nothing to forgive." Beckett said after a moment,she waited for the girl to respond but when she didn't even look at her she decided to continue. "Alexis look at me." She said in a commanding tone of voice and Alexis slowly turned her head but still didn't dare speak so Beckett decided she had to deal with this guilt the girl was feeling right away,before it became too much for her to handle. "Listen I know what you are going through and I will not lie,what you said hurt at the time." At this admission a look of shame passed over Alexis' face but Beckett knew that the best way to deal with this was to press on so that is what she did. "But I also know why you did it. You are confused,angry,and afraid. What happened today was not fair and at some point you had to break and yell at someone. I was in your position when I was just two years older then you and I know that it makes you want to throw things and hit things and do nothing but scream,to tell the truth you held together better then I did." Beckett admitted.

"You don't have to lie to make me feel better. I know I reacted badly." Alexis said after a moment.

"I am not." Beckett replied. "When the police came to my house and told my father and I that my mother had been murdered I completely lost it when they said they didn't have any suspects and accused them of not trying to solve the case. Deep down I knew that was wrong but the pain was so raw I had to lash out at someone and they were the ones there at the moment."

"Oh,really?" Alexis said and she looked as if she was only just starting to make sense of her own feelings.

"Yes,really." Beckett said and then moved on. "Also I know you are scared of being alone,I would be too but let me tell you that you will never be left on your own. First because your father is not going anywhere,and second because you will always have your grandmother."

"I know and I felt bad about saying that and said sorry to grams almost right away." Alexis interrupted.

Beckett nodded her understanding and then continued. "And third because if anything were to happen to your father I will be there for you. Your father asked me a few months ago to take care of you if anything were to happen to him on the job and I promised him I would and I keep my promises."

"Thank you Kate but you don't have to do that,after all I am not your daughter." Alexis objected looking at the detective with shock in her eyes.

"This isn't something I have to do." Beckett explained. "It's something I want to do because I care about you and I know what it is like to lose a parent. The real question is are you okay this?"

"Yeah I am." Alexis said and a sad smile played across her lips.

"Good,and don't worry because your dad isn't going anywhere." Beckett said with a smile and then she began to stand up. "Would you mind if we got up off this floor, my back is killing me?"

Alexis nodded that she understood and they stood up and started walking back and across the room together in order to stretch their legs. Once in a while they would start chatting about something or over but mostly they were silent. Both women needed time to process the day's events now that the emotions were less raw.

A huge part of Beckett wanted to run but she knew that was not an option any more,she had promissed Alexis she would be there for her and even though she was pretty sure Castle would be fine she could tell the redhead still needed someone who knew what she was going through and she was the only person in her life who had any idea what it was like so she couldn't run out on her. She had been so mad when her own father had become too lost in his own grief to help her when she needed it she would not repeat that mistake no matter how strongly her brain screamed at her to run away from the pain,she would not do it.

For her part Alexis had never really had a woman in her life who stood by her in moments like this besides her grandmother and as much as she loved her she could tell her Grams was worn out from worrying about her son and she didn't like to add to her burdens. Young people never like leaning on older relatives and Alexis was just glad that in this moment of crisis she had someone else to lean on who seemed to understand what she was going through better then anyone else. It filled her with a sense of relief and gave her hope that maybe,just maybe her father would be okay.

**Okay originally this chapter was going to be longer and get more into the plot but it ended on such a different emotional note then the next part of the story but putting it together with that part felt like it gave the chapter whiplash so I split them up. Sorry the plot didn't take off in this chapter. Also there have never been a lot of Alexis/Beckett scenes on the show so I would love some feedback on what I did wrong and if you think I did them justice because I am not sure. The amount of feedback I got for the first chapter was amazing,you guys are the best and I have decided to focus on one story at a time right now while I get used to writing again and this the story I will be focusing on right now. Look for updates every couple of day or so.**

**Thanks for reading and thank you all for your support. Chapter three will be coming in the next day or so.**

**Once again many thanks go to casketfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The next few days were rather uneventful. Castle underwent several more surgeries and his condition was upgraded but he was kept in a medically induced coma so that his body would have a chance to heal before it was subjected to the stress of waking up. The family was allowed to sit by his bedside and Alexis stayed there day and night and since Alexis was there that is where Beckett stayed. Over those few days she grew closer to the girl than she had before as they talked about one thing and another,it was clear Alexis wasn't used to having a woman who was closer to her in age than her grandmother to talk to and Beckett's heart broke for the girl. Yes Alexis' mother was still alive but she didn't want anything to do with the redhead. Beckett's mother had at least been close to her before she died and Beckett couldn't help but wonder who had it worse,at least Beckett had known her mother had loved her. After the first couple of days Beckett had managed to convince Alexis that it would be okay to leave for a few hours so they could shower,pick up clean clothes,and Beckett could get a new cellphone,not even Martha had been able to talk her into doing that. There was no denying the bond that was growing between the two.

While they were out Beckett swung by the 12th to check on the progress of the case and sadly it was going nowhere. They had a description of a man from a groundskeeper but it was so vague it wasn't helpful at all and they still couldn't find anything on the gun. Ryan and Esposito brought up the possibility of looking more closely at Montgomory's history since there was bound to be a link somewhere between him and the person behind the shooting otherwise what sense did killing him and taking a shot at Beckett make,but Beckett vetoed the idea. She was not about to put his family through seeing his name dragged through the mud as if he was just another dirty cop. He was so much more than that to Beckett but she knew all the jackals at internal affairs and the media would see would be another dirty cop and she couldn't bear the thought of that happening to the man who had given his life to make things right.

It was exactly one week after the shooting when the doctors started to wean Castle off of the drugs so that he could wake up and they could run tests. Doctor Baker warned then that it would take a few days for Castle to wake up and that when he did he could very well be in a state of shock,still once he started coming off of the drugs Alexis refused to leave his side. Alexis sat by his bed in a small reclining chair and held his right hand,she kept up a steady one way conversation believing it would help him wake up. Beckett stayed with Alexis but the first time they saw Castle she was in such a state of shock that if she had not made a promise to be there she would have run. Castle looked nothing like himself,his skin was a sickly pale almost yellow from not being outside in so long,he had lost weight,and tubes seem to be coming out of every part of his body. Worst of all he wasn't making a sound,he wasn't talking or smiling and that was just too strange and out of character for the writer,it nearly sent Beckett into shock all over again.

It was on the morning of the second day of waiting for Castle to wake up that Beckett received a text message.

**Esposito:**_The New Captain wants us all in her office ASAP._

Beckett texted back that she understood and would be there as soon as she could. She turned to talk to Alexis but waited a moment when she heard what the girl was saying,not wanting to interrupt.

Alexis was holding her father's right hand and looking down at his closed eyes as she spoke gently with her voice just above a whisper.

"Dad please wake up. I don't care how bad you are hurt,I don't care if you can't walk. I need you. I know it will be hard but please don't give up,this will not change who you are. You are my dad and I need you. Please wake up." Alexis pleaded and Beckett could tell she was on the verge of tears,this made Beckett feel bad about what she was going to have to say but there was no avoiding it,she had to go into work. She quietly stepped towards the young redhead.

"Alexis" She said and the girl looked up at her. "I am sorry but I just got a text and I have to go into work for a meeting."

"Is this about the case?" Alexis asked,it seemed she had a need for answers and justice that Beckett understood all too well and the detective hoped that she would be able to fill those needs sooner rather then later,the last thing she wanted to see was the passionate girl lose her lust for life the way she had.

"I don't know,all I do know is that my new captain wants to see me." Beckett answered honestly and then added with concern showing in her eyes. "Will you be okay?"

"Yeah I will be fine." Alexis nodded smiling to show that she would be alright. "Dad is out of the worst of it and your job is important and Grams should be here in about half an hour. I'll be fine."

"Okay,text me if there are any changes or you need me." Beckett said and then turned and walked out of the hospital room. She had no idea what she was in for at the precinct but she hoped against hope she would be getting answers.

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Beckett arrived at the 12th precinct about twenty minutes later,as she entered the bullpen she felt a strange sense of relief,finally she was on solid ground. She was not good with emotions or supporting people,but she would do it because she had made a promise. What she was good at was solving cases,the precinct more than any other place in the world was where she felt,safe,at ease,and needed and it felt like forever since she had last set foot in the place that more then anywhere else she thought of as her home.

She looked around the bullpen taking in the familiar view that it had been all too long since she had been a part of,a selfish part of her that she was ashamed to admit existed could not wait for Castle to wake up so she could get back to work. Her work was what made Beckett feel alive and she missed it to the point that it caused a dull ache in her chest. Still she had made a promise and she was going to keep it. She was pulled from these thoughts when she spotted Ryan and Esposito sitting at Esposito's desk and Ryan waved her over.

"Hey,anything new on the case?" She asked as she made her way over to the desk,skipping the pleasantries. Getting whoever shot Castle was more important to her than catching up.

"Wouldn't know,the case has been taken out of our hands." Esposito said with a disgruntled huff.

"What,why?!" Beckett demanded angrily. This pushed her to point of almost white hot rage,getting Castle's shooter should be the only thing that mattered to the 12th precinct at the moment. He may not have been a cop but he had worked with them all for three years,he had put his life on the line for them many times,none of them would be alive at the moment if he hadn't solved a case and disarmed a bomb,and for herself personally if the shooter was a pro sniper Beckett had little doubt that if he hadn't taken the bullet for her she would be lying dead at the moment. He deserved better then to have his case shoved aside and left unsolved just because he was "not a real cop". The fact that this seemed to be one of the first actions taken by the new precinct captain did not make a good impression on Beckett. Whoever this new captain was Beckett was already sure that they were not half the captain Montgomery had been and she already knew she didn't like them one bit.

"Maybe the new captain will explain,she wanted to see us the moment you got here." Ryan said as he threw up his hands in disgust.

"Well then I guess we had better find out what are this is about then." Beckett said looking over at the closed door of the captain's office and for the first time since she had come to work at the 12th precinct she dreaded going into the room,not only was it a reminder of a dead friend but now someone she was sure she wouldn't like had taken his place. Still there was no avoiding it so she pushed her emotions down and put on her best stoic face that she used with New York's murderers and walked over to the door with Ryan and Esposito following a step behind.

Beckett knocked on the door and heard a gruff female voice say "Come in". Beckett opened the door and stepped inside and got her first look at her new captain. She was a dark skinned woman in a standard issue dark business suit with a scowl on here face. Beckett had to wonder if the scowl was for her and her team or if it was a permanent feature on the middle aged woman's face. She was standing behind her desk looking down at some papers she was engrossed in. Beckett noticed that on her desk there was a picture of the woman with a man who looked a few years older then her and three children. Maybe she was human after all,it seemed that she had kids.

"Come in and close the door behind you." the woman said making a motion with her hand but not looking up from her paper work. Once she heard the door close she finally put the last piece of paper down and looked up at the three detectives who has entered her office. There was something about the woman and the way she looked at them that caused Beckett to remember being called to the principal's office when she was in grade school and it made her to stand at attention with a look of respect directed at the older woman.

"My name is Victoria Gates and I am your new captain. You will address me as either Captain or Sir,do you understand?" She spoke in a clipped almost harsh tone and then waited for all three to nod their understanding before she continued. "You should know a few things about me before we go on. First you should know that I have spent most of my career working inside Internal Affairs. I have not made many friends in the department but I believe the work is important. There is nothing lower then a police officer who betrays the public trust. They not only commit crimes that they should be punished for but they damage the public's trust in the police force and thus do harm to every honest officer who puts their lives on the line to protect the city and it's citizen's every day. We all swore an oath to uphold the law no matter what and anyone who can't keep their word has no business working for the city as an officer. I also have zero tolerance for the wall of blue. It's bullshit and I will not stand for it in any precinct I run. You should also know that I was the top detective at Internal Affairs for nearly two decades and I have gotten very good at telling when I am being lied to by cops."

All of this made Beckett squirm but she didn't dare show it on her face,with any luck this was just a standard issue tough girl speech from someone who didn't expect to get the chance to run a precinct and needed to show how strong she was to the people under her command and this wasn't going to go where she feared it was. At any rate Beckett wasn't about to sell out a friend who had paid for his sins,he had been there for her whenever she needed him so she was going to be there for him when he needed her to protect his reputation so his family would not go through the pain of seeing him treated like a common crook in front of the whole city. Beckett wanted to speak and opened her mouth to ask about the one thing she cared about at the moment,Castle's case but Gates interrupted her. This time Gates spoke a little more gently and her eyes softened somewhat and she came off almost like a mother talking to her children.

"Now is there anything any of you want to tell me before we continue?" She asked. Beckett didn't have to think twice before shaking her head "no" and a second later Ryan and Esposito followed suit. Gates looked like she was about to speak again but this time it was Beckett who got her say in before the captain could speak.

"Sir,I would like to know why the Richard Castle shooting was taken away from my team." Beckett said calling on all her training as a cop to keep her emotions in check and not let her face betray anything.

"Because the commissioner personally asked the FBI to take over the case." Gates stated bluntly. This shocked Beckett,she knew the feds wouldn't care about the case the way she did and she couldn't let them screw it up. She had the best team in New York city,she had to know why the commissioner didn't trust her with a case that was clearly within her jurisdiction.

"Why did he ask for them,this is our case." Beckett stated desperately.

"Because you are too close to the case and this case is now of federal importance." Gates explained. This got a shocked look from all three detectives so Gates continued and explained as if she was talking to children. Beckett didn't know the woman well but she was clearly in no mood for questions. "Did you really think that a world famous writer could be shot in the back jumping in front of a bullet aimed at a detective who was speaking at her captain's funeral,a man who himself was shot dead and it wouldn't make national headlines?" Gates asked and Beckett despite the anger she was working hard to contain had to see her captain's point. That didn't change the fact that she didn't like it and wasn't about to let the FBI botch the case. Gates then continued. "The mayor wants to be sure that the shooter and whoever is behind him or her is brought to justice and to that end every avenue of investigation is pursued."

"Sir,Castle was my partner." Gates raised her left eyebrow skeptically at this admission from Beckett but she refused to be diverted from her purpose,she owed it to Castle and his family to find whoever had shot him and so she continued. "I can assure you I will leave no stone unturned when it comes to finding his shooter."

"Oh,really?" Gates asked,her voice laced with disbelief. "Then perhaps you can explain to me why none of you bothered to mention the fact that Montgomery was dirty and guilty of at least the murder of an FBI agent in your reports and you didn't report it to Internal Affairs as per department policy and the law require. Despite the fact that he is our best lead to the person who ordered Mister Castle shot and thus Mister Castle's shooter." Gates said her voice laced with ice and there was no mercy in her eyes.

This bombshell shocked all three detectives beyond the power to speak,they knew they were in trouble,and Beckett was thrown out of her poker face and for the first time let her true emotions be seen but she was robbed of the power of speech so Gates spoke again.

"So you did know." She said quietly after she observed the reaction of all three detectives. The experienced detectives had been so shocked by her words that they had fallen into a rookie trap that every detective learned the first time they talked to a suspect. The detectives had been tricked into admitting something that the person on the other side of the interrogation only suspected but could not prove. Gates then added as she walked back and forth in front of her desk looking each detective in the eye. "Were any of you involved with Montgomery in whatever this is,Did you take money from him?"

Esposito was too ashamed to speak,he had always conducted himself with a sense of honor and now the idea that he had failed to live up to the ideal was too much for him to process at that moment so he just shook his head "No".

Beckett had too many emotions conflicting inside herself to speak. It was everything from shock that Gates knew,to sadness that she had failed to protect her friend,to worry about what Gates would do to her team so she too simply shook her head.

Only Ryan found a voice and spoke clearly. "No,Sir. We did not know Montgomery had anything to do with this until almost two weeks. Ago."

"I see." Gates said thoughtfully turning around to consider how she would respond to this admission for a few moments before turning back to the team. "I believe you,but you have all done one of the worst things an officer of this city can do. You have covered up the crimes of another officer and and I can not let that slide. You are all suspended without pay until Internal Affairs can decide what charges to bring against you. At the very least if I were you I would not count on ever working as a police officer again." Gates said coldly.

This shocked Beckett out of her silence. She was about to lose the only thing she had left in her life,she didn't have a real family,she didn't have a boyfriend any more,she didn't even have any hobbies. All she had in her life was The Job and now that was being stripped away from her,she wanted to fall to the floor and cry,she had nothing left. Still she could not let herself do that. This was her team and they had only done what she had asked them to do as friends,she couldn't let them take the hit for this. It was time for her to step up and do what good leaders do,not let those who follow them pay the price for their mistakes if they can help it and Beckett could help it. Beckett took a deep calming breath and then stepped forward so she was between Gates and her team and when she spoke she was completely calm.

"Sir Detectives Ryan and Epsosito knew nothing about this. I was the lead detective and I ordered them to let me report Montgomery's involvement,they had no idea that I didn't report it to anyone. They are only guilty of following my order." Her voice and face betrayed no emotion. She knew the two detectives behind her would object so she turned quickly around and flashed them a look that told them that they had better not say anything before she turned back to face Gates.

"I see." Gates said and it was clear from her tone of voice that she didn't believe Beckett's story but she had no way to prove it was not the truth. At any rate having one detective fall on the sword would be better for the precinct then having to fire an entire team of detectives. "In that case you can go back to work,detectives and please close the door on the way out." She said glancing at Ryan and Esposito and they left the room a few seconds latter,and once the door closed Gates sat down in the nicely padded office chair that was behind her desk.

"Have a seat Detective." Gates said motioning to the chair in front of her desk and her voice had calmed somewhat. It was still hard as steel but it seemed to be steel covered by wool. "Why did you do it Beckett?" Gates asked.

"Roy Montgomery trained me,he was a friend who was always looking out for me,and he died making things right." Beckett answered brokenly.

"Unfortunately he didn't make things right." Gates stated coldly. "The people behind this are still out there and who knows how many other people they will kill to cover their tracks. Not to mention these people seem to be completely ruthless and I don't think they will stop coming after you or your team,so by covering up the only lead you have put not only yourself and them in danger but all of your loved ones as well since I don't think the people behind this would think twice about using them to get to any of you."

Beckett had never thought of it in that way before,she had been too emotional to think about the whole set up clearly and logically like that. She couldn't stand the idea of someone going after her father or god forbid Alexis to get to her. Still she couldn't regret protecting Montgomery,even if he was found out she had at least done her duty as his friend. She couldn't bring herself to ask about her future or even think about it at that moment so she just nodded and asked the other question that was on her mind.

"How did you find out?"

"The first thing the FBI did was look at all of Montgomery's phone and financial records as well as people he had worked with over the years along with the last case worked by the team who was shot at during his funeral. I think they also have some other evidence that they are not sharing at the moment. It didn't take them more then a couple of days to figure out that he was involved and your team must have known about it,otherwise why take a shot at you?" Gates explained quietly.

"I see." Beckett said and she was still in too much of a state of shock to show her true emotions so she just asked the next question. "What happens now?"

"I have to ask you a few questions before I decide on that." Gates stated in a firm and businesslike manner but there was something in her voice that hinted that she wasn't completely uncaring. "First have you ever withheld evidence in a case before?" Gates asked.

"No,sir!" Beckett shook her head violently. "I only did it this time because I am personally loyal to Captain Montgomery and I didn't want to be the one to drag his name through the mud in front of his family."

"Okay." Gates said nodding and then asked the follow up. "You did this despite the fact that he helped set in motion a chain of events that led to your own mother's murder?"

This shocked Beckett,she couldn't believe this woman was bringing HER mother into this,Beckett's face began to turn red. "Don't tell me how to feel about my mother. He was roped into that situation by two older detectives and he spent the rest of his life living in fear but still did his best to be a good cop and help people and he gave his life to save mine! If you think that I regret protecting him and his good name then you are wrong and let me tell you something my mother would be proud of me for standing by my friend!" She almost shouted as she stood up from her chair.

"Sit down Detective!" Gates said in a harsh commanding tone and the look in her eyes didn't brook any kind of argument with her order. It took Beckett a few moments to regain her composure but she slowly began to calm down and a few seconds latter she obeyed Gates' order. Gates waited another thirty or so seconds before she spoke next. "I don't think you fully understand the consequences of your actions." Gates said at last. This caused Beckett to fix her gaze on the older woman from across the desk and when she spoke it was in a controlled solemn tone of voice.

"I understand exactly how badly I have messed up." Beckett said deciding that if this was indeed going to be her last act as a New York City police detective she was going to be completely honest,both with the woman across the table from her and herself. "I got my partner shot. I added to a scandal that is going to damage both this precinct and this department. I gave a murderer time to get away and cover his tracks. I also may have made myself an accessory after the fact to Montgomery's crimes depending on what IA and the FBI decide to do about my withholding evidence. I know I may end up in jail but I can't regret standing by my friend." Beckett finished just barely keeping her emotions in check.

"Well at least you understand. For what it is worth I think you were a good cop and you could be again,but this whole situation is now a federal case and out of my hands." Gates said after a moment. "If charges are not pressed I will have to think long and hard about if I want you in my precinct."

"I understand sir." Was Beckett's only reply,what else could she say?

"Until there is some ruling on your actions I will need your badge and your gun." Gates said standing up from her chair.

"Yes Sir." Was the only reply Beckett could muster as she sadly placed both on the desk and then without saying another word walked out of the office. She couldn't face Ryan and Esposito at that moment so she quickly made her way to the elevator and out of the precinct,for all she knew she was leaving for the last time.

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Beckett wandered the streets for hours as a gentle spring rain fell,her mind a jumbled mess of conflicting thoughts and emotions as depression and fear slowly took over her mind and actions. She could not believe how badly she had wrecked her life. The only thing she had left was being a detective and now that was gone. It was so painful because everything she saw was a reminder of her former life that now lay in shambles. As she finally entered her building she made a decision,she had to get out of the city. There was nothing else for it,she would self destruct if she stayed. She quickly changed into clean clothes and packed a suitcase. All she did was hurt herself and others and now it fully dawned on her that Castle's shooting was her fault in more ways than one. She couldn't face his family or him ever again. She needed to go and spend some time in the quiet and sort out what she was going to do with here life if she stayed out of jail.

It took Beckett only about five minutes to pack her suitcase but to her it felt like five hours. Finally she was ready to go. With tears in her eyes she picked up her keys and suitcase and walked out the door. The sooner she left New York behind the better it would be for everyone.

**Sorry it took so long for me to post this,it should have been up yesterday but I spent the whole day at the doctor's office and couldn't write.**

**Word of warning if you are expecting this story to follow season four's events just with Castle shot this may not be the story for you. I have no problem with those story but that isn't what this story is. This story is inspired by season four but it will not follow the same path. There are three things that are different right off the Bat. First Josh broke up with Beckett a few days before Castle confronted her. Second Castle was the one shot. Third this story is picking up right at the shooting instead of three months latter so the deal that made has not been made yet so everyone is still in danger on top of everything else. We are in for the long haul people and I hope you are okay with that because I write to please my readers and you guys have been amazing. I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Please leave honest reviews even if they are harsh,it is the only way I will learn. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

**I just edited this chapter not only to correct some spelling and grammar mistakes but to clarify some plot points and character motivations. Please don't judge Beckett too harshly. Remember she has never been in a position of having to take care of someone else before and her whole world has just come falling down. Also unlike the show she has not had any time to herself since Montgomery has shot,she has been staying strong for other people for almost two weeks. Some sort of break down was bound to happen at some point. I will not give anything away but rest assured that there is a plan and this story will go somewhere I think most fans will like.**

**Some readers have asked how the FBI got onto Montgomery so fast,all I will tell you is that it will become clear as the story goes on. Please hang in there because there will be answers.**

**Finally I wanted to thank everyone again who cared enough to review. I truly believe that your feedback helped me make this chapter and this story better so thank you very much. I hope to have the next chapter up by tonight or tomorrow.**

**Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of the story.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for beta help with this chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Kate Beckett had no real plan as she stood in the rain that was falling down more heavily then it had been just a few minutes before, she was too confused and emotional to have a plan. She had one suitcase,no car,and no job. As far as she could tell her life was over, all she knew was that she needed to get away from everything that reminded her of the complete failure her life had became or she would end up doing something stupid as she knew all too well depressed people who had lost everything tended to do. She had to get somewhere quiet and her only plan was to go to her father's place and ask him to drive her to his cabin in his pickup truck. Normally she would have taken her Harley but it wasn't at all suited for the rough back roads that led to the cabin so for the first time since she was a teenager Beckett was going to have to ask her father for a ride. Beckett felt a little silly,she was a grown woman who went up against killers every day and yet her she was running back to her father like a scared little girl but she had no idea what else she could do so that was the plan she was going with.

Finally after what felt like hours a taxi pulled up to the curb and she got inside. She gave the driver the address of her father's building and they were off. About fifteen minutes later she was standing outside of the door to her father's apartment, soaked from head to toe, and with a suitcase in her hand. On any other day she would have worried about how bad this would look, but today things really were that bad. Timidly she raised her hand and knocked on her father's door,a few seconds later Jim Beckett answered the door and was greeted by the sight of his daughter looking in worse shape than he had seen her since her mother had been murdered.

"Katie,what's wrong. Did Richard Castle take a turn for the worse of something?" He asked with concern showing all other his face. At that moment Castle dying was the only thing he could think of that would cause his daughter to show up on his doorstep looking in such rough shape.

"Oh Dad." Kate said with tears in her eyes as she stepped into the apartment and placed her suitcase on the floor to the right of the door. Jim Beckett could tell what his daughter needed,so he leaned in and gave her a hung and hung onto her. After a few second she returned the hug and then pulled away and looked into his eyes. She had stopped crying but something was still wrong, finally she answered his question. "No Castle is fine and getting better as far as I know." She said with a sniff.

Jim side stepped her for a moment to close the door and then turned back to face his daughter. "Well what has gone wrong then, I would thing that would make you happy?" He asked.

"It does" Kate said looking down at the wood floor. "But I really screwed up and I may have wrecked my life."

"It can't be that bad." Jim said hugging her again.

"It is this time." Kate replied just barely hold her tears in check.

"Katie you are soaked." Jim observed as he pulled back from her. "Why don't you go to the bathroom and change. I'll put on some coffee and then you can meet me on the couch and tell me all about it. Okay?"

"Okay." Kate said and she managed a small smile. Just being in the same apartment as her dad was helping so she picked up her suit case and headed for the bathroom.

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It was about an hour and many tears and hugs as well as two mugs of coffee later when Kate finally finished telling her father everything that had happened. He asked a few questions here and there but he mostly just listened up until she told him her plan to deal with everything.

"I think that is a good idea." He said at last looking at his daughter who was sitting to his right holding her almost empty coffee mug on the old couch in his living room. "You could use some time to decompress."

"Yeah plus it may be my last taste of free air for a few years." Beckett said as she forced out a bitter laugh.

"I don't think you will have to worry about going to jail" Jim said trying to comfort his daughter. "You didn't find out about Montgomery until the night he died and after that you were in shock. If they do try it I know some good defense attorneys who owe my favor and they will make mince meat out of them!" Jim became angry as he said the last part. He would never tell his daughter because he didn't want to add to her problems but the anger he was directing at the police at the moment was really there because of what he had just heard about Montgomery. Unlike his daughter he thought the bastard had gotten off easy,if he had done the right thing years ago his wife would still be alive and he would never forgive him for that. Still he knew voicing these thoughts would only distress his daughter so instead he focused the anger he could not control on the police department that had stabbed her in the back.

"Maybe I deserve to be in jail. After all Castle got shot and it was all my fault." Kate said quietly,not daring to look her father in the eye.

Jim Beckett sighed and thought for a second and then he realized that the only way to absolve his daughter of guilt in this matter was to come clean with a secret that he had hoped to take to his grave because he knew she would hate him once he told her about it. Still it was the only way to help his little girl and he had hurt her enough in his life so he took a deep breath and then in a guilty tone he spoke. "No Katie,it's not your fault at all. It's mine."

Kate looked up at him shocked. "What do you mean it's yours?! You had nothing to do with this!" She stated.

"Yes I did." Jim said with another sad sigh. "A few days before the funeral I went to visit him in his home and I told him he had dug up this case again and now he needed to stop you from getting hurt because of it. I told him he was the only one you would listen to so it was his job to stop you from going down the rabbit hole again." Jim confessed.

Kate's only response was to stand up slowly and walk to the other side of the room and stare at the bookcase without looking at her father once. Jim gave his daughter the time that he knew she needed but after about five minutes of no one saying anything he finally spoke up. "Katie please say something." He pleaded with her.

Kate turned around there was fire in her eyes. "You interfered in my life! I am a grown woman and I was working a case and you told Castle that he had to stop me from doing my job?! How dare you!" She yelled.

"I had to protect you." Jim said as a way of explaining.

"Well guess what, you lost the right to protect me when you abandoned me for drink after mom died! You are the one who forced me to grow up fast so you lost the right to treat me as your child when you did that!" Beckett shot back and her face was turning red.

Jim's response was to just look away,the barb about his drinking had hurt him and it showed that his daughter had lost all faith in him and didn't care if she caused him pain. What was more he knew she was right and that she would never forgive him.

"Because of you Castle may never walk again and his daughter is crying by his bedside! You don't only wrecked my life but her's as well!" Beckett continued to yell as she stormed off towards the front door. "I will tell you something else! I don't need you or Castle to take care of me or tell me what I should or should not do. This is my life and from now on I want you to stay out of it!" With that Beckett stormed out of the apartment slamming the door behind her.

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Kate was crying as she walked slowly down one street after another. Thankfully it had stopped raining, still the sky was overcast and at least that fit her mood. She had no idea what she was going to do,now she could count the last of her family as another thing she had lost. Still she would not forgive her father, he had not been there when she needed him and now he had guilt tripped Castle into stepping in from of a bullet. With his over the top sense of melodrama Castle must have decided that he had to die for her after that talk. She knew he tended to project his emotions onto others too so he most likely started thinking about how he would feel if he lost Alexis and decided he would not let her father go through that same pain. She would never forgive her father for trying to take control where he was not needed and putting those ideas in Castle's head.

Beckett had no idea where to go at this point. It seemed like no one needed her and there was no one she could trust. She knew one thing she didn't even want to see Castle. For one thing he had lied to her, he had acted like it was his idea to come over and try to talk her out of going after her mom's case but now she knew the truth, he only did that out of guilt. It did explain one thing, she had been expecting him to say that he loved her but he hadn't. Beckett could not understand why he had not said anything but now it was clear, he didn't love her. Everything he had done he had done out of guilt, he was the one who opened her mom's case so now the only reason he had been staying around and he jumped in front of a bullet was because he felt guilty about reopening the case. Beckett couldn't believe how stupid she had been. She had started to fall for him and now she knew he did not return her feelings. Well it didn't matter, she was not a cop anymore so there was no reason for her to ever see him again and that sat well with her, it would mean that she could get on with her life.

"Get on with her life", what did that even mean now? Her job defined her but she didn't have that, so she would have to find something else to do. Maybe she would go back to law school and get her degree, she could not honor her mother by getting justice for her any more but maybe she could honor her memory by following the dream she always had for her daughter of Kate following in her footsteps and becoming a great lawyer. She could become a prosecutor, if charges were not pressed against her maybe she could get a job at the DA's office and put murderers behind bars that way. It was clear the new captain would never let her be a cop again. The best she could hope for was that she would stay out of jail and that she had not wasted too much of her life being a cop to make a name for herself as a lawyer.

"Wasted her life being a cop." Beckett did not like the sound of that. She had made a difference as a cop and been there for the victims and she had always seen herself spending the rest of her life as a detective, not some paper pusher who worked a safe office job and had to worry about politics. She wanted to be out on the streets every day, helping people. A lot of cops didn't care about victims and their families but she did and she needed to help them. Still that was not an option anymore and she had made her own bed and she had to sleep in it as best she could. She could still get justice for victims as a lawyer,it would just be harder and would not be as personal, but she could do it. She knew she could make this work. So now she had a plan and a reason to fight the charges, she couldn't go to jail or get a black mark on her record that would keep her from passing the bar. Beckett felt herself calming and for the first time that day she had a sense of hope and she had some idea where her life was going. It wasn't perfect and it was not what she wanted but she had a goal and that meant she could start making plans and start working. Suddenly she could handle her life again. Kate Beckett was back and in control, she could do this.

Kate Beckett the cop was gone and Kate Beckett the hard nosed prosecutor who put crooks behind bars no matter what and gave a voice to victims in the court room was about to be born. It had taken a long time but her life had come full circle and she was back at the places she had been before her mother died. Maybe this was how her life was meant to be and everything else had been a detour and now it was back on track for the first time? She didn't believe in fate but it was hard not to feel like this was all part of a larger plan.

As Kate made her way back into her building much sooner then she thought she would before she felt content. Not happy but content and an odd peace was descending on her for the first time in about two weeks. She finally felt like she was in control of her own life again and it felt good. She wouldn't need other people watching her back so she would not be putting anyone in danger and she could still do important work. It may not have been work she liked but she was sure she could bring herself to love it if she tried hard and even if she didn't she would still be helping people. It would take a lot of hard work to make this happen but she could do it because she was Kate Beckett and if there was one thing she was not afraid of it was hard work. With no relationships she could focus all her energy on the task in front of her which meant she could not fail.

Beckett entered her apartment and decided to take a bath. It had been a long hard day and she felt the need to relax but not because of depression any more. Everything she had gone through was worth it because she now knew exactly how her life would play out and there would not be any messy personal relationships or dead bodies at three in the morning to get in the way. Her life was back on track for the first time in fourteen years.

**Well there is chapter four. Sorry it took so long but I got blocked when it came to writing the Kate/Jim scene and it took me forever to get that down. Don't worry Beckett is not leaving the story and there will be interactions between her and Castle. I know it seems a little hopeless right now but this is going somewhere. The next chapter will start to tone down the angst a bit. I didn't like putting it in this chapter but I didn't see a way to avoid it without writing Beckett out of character so I had to do what I did. I'll try to have the next chapter up tomorrow. I know some of you are not happy with the angst but please hang in there it will be dying down in the next chapter. **

**Oh and the response to the last chapter was amazing. A lot of your reviews and Pms were extremely helpful and helped me fix the chapter and make this one better so thank you all so much. You guys are the best.**

**Thanks for taking the time to read and please leave a review.**

**Thanks again to Casketfan5 for beta help.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

By the time she had finished her bath Kate Beckett was feeling as close as she could feel to being relaxed. Her life was still full of problems but she thought she had found a way to get away from them all. Once she got away from everything and everyone who reminded her of her problems she would feel better she was sure of it and after all it wasn't like she had ever done anyone else any good, even if they didn't know it at the time people would be better off with out her and if the sniper ever came back her life would be the only one in danger.

Beckett had decided that tomorrow morning she would take the first step towards her new life, she would resign from the NYPD. It would look better than if she was fired. A small part of Beckett's mind questioned if talking this new direction with her life was really what she wanted to do. After all she hated politics and yet here she was before she even had the job playing politics. She was now more worried about how things looked then the truth. Beckett pushed that part down and forced it behind a wall by telling herself this was the only way forward and her mother would be proud of her for taking this action. It didn't matter if she liked it or not, she would change what she liked if that was what was required in order to move forward with her life.

Beckett's thoughts were interrupted by her phone buzzing in her pocket, she picked it up and saw that she had received a text message from Alexis. With everything else that had happened in such a short space of time Beckett had forgotten that she had promised to return to the hospital that morning. She briefly wondered if she should even look at the text, after all given how badly she had messed up her own life she didn't think she had the right to try and tell someone else what to do with their own life and Alexis would most likely want advice from her. Still that thought only lasted a split second, she had to at least let Alexis know she was alright and why she was leaving before she left so she opened the text.

_Kate sorry to bother you at work but as soon as you get off please come back to the hospital, I need you badly. _The message seemed to plead with her.

Beckett was not sure going back to the hospital was such a good idea, after all if she had some kind of breakdown she would just add to the young redhead's stress not detract from it. Then she remembered her conversation with her own father, and how she had vented all of her hurt over how she had lost him in her moment of need to drink. Alexis may not have been her child but if Alexis lost her to her new life in her moment of need would she really be any better? Finally for the first time in her life she really understood what her father had gone through when her mother died and she began to think that maybe she had been a little unfair to him and had said something she should not have in a moment of rage. Still that could not be her focus at the moment, she had made a promise and she had to keep it. She couldn't let herself break down or run. Alexis needed her and that had to be a good enough reason to return to the hospital no matter how painful it was. She was Kate Beckett and she didn't abandon people in need no matter how hard it was for her to help them. She knew the pain of being left behind and she would not do that to Alexis. Alexis Castle was the sweetest, most caring teenage girl she had ever known and she deserved better so Beckett would be better to help her. She picked up her phone and texted Alexis letting her know that she was on her way.

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It was about twenty minutes later when Beckett stepped off the elevator onto the floor Castle's hospital room was on. She had to show her ID to two police officers who were standing guard in front of the door before they would let her walk down the hall. They had been assigned to guard Castle after his first day in the hospital and Beckett was relieved that Gates had not pulled them off of guard duty. She knew that the assassin must know Castle was alive and she didn't want whoever it was to get a second chance to get to Castle.

Beckett had not gone more then halfway down the hall towards Castle's room when she heard footsteps rapidly approaching her, she looked up just in time to see Alexis running towards her and a second later the young redhead slammed into her and grabbed her in a hug, holding on for dear life. Beckett stopped in her tracks at that point and the next thing she noticed was that Alexis was sobbing uncontrollably. Suddenly Beckett felt extremely guilty. What kind of person was she becoming? She had gone off and left Alexis all day when she needed her. What kind of person left a teenage girl to fend for herself just so they could spend a day wallowing in self pity? Yes she had been in shock and thrown into a state of complete depression because the affects of all the events of the past two weeks had come crashing down on her all at once but that was no excuse. She knew this pain and she would never forgive herself for leaving Alexis to face it on her own. At that moment as she looked down at the redhead who was soaking her blouse with tears she decided that no matter what else happened her days of running from pain were over. The one thing that was more painful then facing her pain and starting over was seeing how she had hurt Alexis and she could not change the events of the day but she could make sure it never happened again. She didn't care if Castle didn't love her, this was bigger then that now. No matter what happened to Castle she knew she had to be there for Alexis or she would never forgive herself.

Beckett placed her right hand on Alexis' head and began hugging her gently, all she could think to do was hold on to the girl and mutter "I'm sorry.' over and over again until she calmed down. After about seven minutes Alexis stopped crying and looked up at Beckett when she did Beckett's heart broke all over again. Alexis' eyes were puffy with red circles around them from crying so hard and all she could do was sniff. Still Beckett could not let her own pain show, this was about Alexis and she needed to be strong for the girl.

"What has happened?" Beckett asked calmly but inside she feared the worst.

"It's dad" Alexis said rubbing her nose with the left hand sleeve of her shirt. "He has started to wake up but he is not fully awake yet and he seems to be having some kind of nightmare." Alexis explained. "He is thrashing about with his arms and head in his sleep. The doctors don't want to sedate him again because it will mean waiting longer for him to wake up and run the tests so they have him tied down right now. Grams and I have done everything we can to calm him down since they say he may be able to hear us but nothing is helping."

"What can I do to help?" Beckett asked, she couldn't think for the life of her how she would help but she would do anything Alexis told her. She had to make up for her actions today.

"Can you go in there and talk to him?" Alexis asked desperately.

"Why would my being in there help when your being in there didn't?" Beckett questioned puzzled.

"Because he keeps calling out for you." Alexis explained bluntly. "I know it will be hard but can you please try?" She pleaded.

"Okay I will try." Beckett said a moment later. "Where is Martha?" She asked.

"She went to get some food in the cafeteria." Alexis answered simply.

"Okay." Beckett said and she could tell the girl need a break so she decided she would pluck up all her courage and go into Castle's room alone. "Why don't you go and join her while I check on your dad." She said.

"Are you sure that is okay?" Alexis asked.

"Yes I am."

"Okay." Was the only answer Alexis could muster after such a long day and then she turned and headed for the elevator.

Beckett took a few moments to compose herself and then took a deep breath and stepped into the room. What Beckett saw shocked her to the core. Castle looked worse than before only now his head was thrashing around as much as it could and he was muttering "Beckett" over and over. Beckett's first instinct was to run but she would not allow herself to do that. She instead walked over and sat down in the chair beside his bed and began to speak in a soothing tone.

"Castle, I am here and I am alright. You need to calm down and wake up I am so sorry I got you shot. Please just calm down." She pleaded and instantly he seemed to calm so she went a step farther and reached down for his right hand which was tied down at the moment and gripped it tightly in her own hand. She was shocked by how cold it felt but she refused to let go and then she spoke again. "Do you feel that Castle?" she asked forcefully. "That is my hand. I am here and I am not going anywhere."

That is when she heard them, the words she had been too shocked to think about, the words that were too powerful for her to handle on top of everything else, the words she could not believe he had said because she had not felt them about herself in a long time, the words that she had convinced herself he had never said and had been all in her head, he was now whispering them gently repeatedly. "Kate I love you."

Beckett was shocked and had to look up at his face and when she did she saw a sight that made her heart heart both leap for joy and clench in fear, Castle's eyes flew open. Castle was awake and the first thing he said in a harsh whisper was "Kate I am so glad you are okay, I love you so much."

This caused Beckett's mouth to fall open in shock. Her whole life had changed today in more ways than one.

**Sorry this chapter was so short but I wanted to get you people out of some of your suspense since you have all been so good. I know a lot of you were not happy about what I did with Beckett in the last two chapters well I hope this chapter makes up for that. There is a story reason why I needed to do what I did with Beckett and I have to warn you not everything is going to be rainbows from her on out but they are starting on the right path. The action should kick in during the next three chapters or so and Castle has a long road ahead of him. Thanks for sticking with me and reviewing. The negative reviews have been very helpful as the did a good job explaining what you didn't like and why. You guys are the best and I will try to have the next chapter up tomorrow. **

**As always thanks for reading and please leave a review.**

**You can thank Caskettfan5 for the beta help on this chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Kate Beckett rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she stood up, she had been sitting in a folding chair outside of Richard Castle's hospital room for about six hours and at some point she had fallen asleep. She had been awakened by the sound of Alexis Castle telling her that Castle had talked her and her grandmother into going home and getting a good night's sleep in a real bed for the first time in a week. This was fine with Beckett since she and Castle needed to talk and she would rather not have anyone around while they did so.

Beckett still could not decide what she was going to say to Castle. He had told her repeatedly how he felt but was it a good idea for her to tell him how she felt? She was still gripped by depression and what it could make her do without thinking scared her. There was also the fact that her every instinct was telling her to run and it was taking all of her self control to remain where she was. Then there was the fact that she knew if she jumped in this would be for the rest of her life. There was no way either of them could handle it if things went bust, was she really ready to choose who she would be with for the rest of her life? Also he had been shot and there was a good chance he would never walk again, could she handle being in a relationship with someone who would need as much help and support as Castle would? She could barely take care of herself. Finally there was the fact that she was not the woman he had fallen in love with any more, she was no longer Kate Becket the tough cop, she was Kate Beckett the lost woman who would be fighting an uphill battle to get a law degree and get a job at the DA's office. Castle had not signed up for that. Could any healthy relationship start in such a way and how was she supposed to know if it would last?

She didn't have any answers for these questions so she decided that the only thing to do was go into the room and talk to Castle and see where the conversation led. She didn't like not knowing what she would do or having a plan but it was either go with the flow or run and she had told him she was not going anywhere. She really had to stop making promises she was not sure she could keep. Still she had made the promise so there was nothing else to do but live up to it. So she took a breath to calm herself, put on her best game face,and stepped into the room.

Castle at least looked a little better. He was propped up into a sitting position in the bed and was no longer tied down. He still had tubes coming out of him and he was way too pale but he was awake and alert so that was a huge improvement over the past week. He looked unsure of himself and Beckett wished she knew what to say to bring the smile back that somehow managed to always lift her spirits but what can you say to someone who may never walk again to make them smile? Beckett had no idea so she instead settled for walking over to the chair next to his bed and sitting down.

"Hey" Was all Beckett could bring herself to say as she sat down but she forced a half smile onto her face in a weak attempt to cheer Castle up.

"Alexis told me what you did this past week, thanks." Castle said turning his head to face her and then he added. "You don't have to stay I will be okay. I am sure Josh doesn't like all this time you are spending with me."

This confused Beckett, didn't he want her to stay? Did he even remember what he had said to her? Did he mean it or did he only say it because of how guilty he felt? He had refused to use the words before so now which was the way he truly felt? Beckett had almost convinced herself to tell him how she felt but now she couldn't stand the thought of him not returning her feelings, she was in no shape to take a rejection like that after the day she had so instead she picked a neutral topic.

"The doctors did a lot of tests on you when you woke up, do they know anything?" She asked trying not to get too emotional.

"They said it's a fifty fifty shot if the damage will heal, but either way I will be in a wheelchair for at least a year." He said with a heavy sigh and turned away from Beckett's gaze.

"How are you doing with that?" Beckett asked timidly and she wanted to reach out and touch him but she was not sure if he would want her to so she kept herself under control.

"To tell the truth I don't think it has sunk in yet." Castle admitted and his voice was just above a whisper. "I Mean I can't feel anything below my waist and my whole life feels like it is over but I think the shock and the pain meds that are making me feel kind of loopy are keeping it from really sinking in. I guess whenever I get out of here will be when it starts to feel real and I have no idea how I will deal with it then."

This frank admission of just how frail and unsure of himself he was broke Beckett's heart and a single tear ran down her cheek as she turned and looked at the floor. What had she done? Would it be any wonder if he couldn't love her after what she did to him? All she could do was mutter "I'm sorry." in a voice that was so quiet Castle almost couldn't hear it, she sounded like a scared child at that moment.

"Don't be sorry." Castle said forcefully and Beckett looked up and saw a cold fire in his eyes that she had only seen before when someone he loved was in danger or an injustice made him angry and determined to set things right. "This is no one's fault but the person who pulled the trigger and no matter what happens I do not regret jumping in front of that bullet, I love you and I know I wouldn't have made it if you had died. This was my choice and I did it for no other reason then I love you so don't you dare blame yourself!"

Beckett was in a sense of shock but also strangely relieved, she always thought she would be overwhelmed if she knew for sure how Castle felt and she was but there was also a part of her that felt relief at having everything finally made clear. There was no more room for doubt, no more room for confusion, everything was crystal clear to her for the first time since she had pulled this maddening man into an interview room three years ago. Now all she had to do was figure out how she felt and if acting on those feelings was a good idea.

When Beckett looked up at Castle at last her mind was made up for her, there was guilt in his eyes and he spoke quietly. "The only thing I regret is that I seem to have added to the burden you carry every day. You are the most remarkable woman I have ever known and you carry the weight of the world on your shoulders and I am sorry I added to that. Please don't let this keep you from having a life, You deserve to be happy even if it isn't with me. Please go and live your life."

By the time Castle finished speaking there were tears forming in the corner of his eyes and Beckett couldn't think of any words that could make them go away. Castle was the one with all the words, she was a woman of action so she decided to take some, she leaned in and captured a very shocked Castle's mouth in a forceful kiss. At first Castle was too shocked to react and then much to Beckett's dismay he used both of his arms to push her off of him.

"I can't do this." He said and Beckett was now the one on the verge of tears. Of course he could not, this was all too much too fast and it was a stupid idea. Castle saw the confusion and fear in her face so he spoke quickly and explained. "Meredith cheated on me and it nearly destroyed me so as much as I would love for this to continue, I can't do that to someone else. As much as I want you I know we would both regret it if we started with you cheating on Doctor motorcycle boy."

Oh now so many things made sense to Beckett. No wonder he wouldn't say anything before the shooting, He would never risk causing someone the same pain he had been through. It was the same as her not being able to leave Alexis, a good person can't put someone else through the most painful thing they had ever been through in their life. She knew there was no love lost between Castle and Josh but even with all that he still cared about other people too much to hurt someone he didn't really like even if it gave him a shot at the thing he wanted most out of life. Now there was an overwhelming thought that Beckett was not sure she was ready for yet, the idea that she was the thing he wanted most out of life. Still she had crossed the Rubicon and there was no going back, a huge part of her still wanted to run but deep down she knew that would kill him and her slowly. Sure they would both still be alive but they would be lost to the world in their own pain and whatever lay ahead she suddenly became sure they would need each other to deal with it so she did the only thing she could do she learned in close to Castle and whispered in a husky voice full of sorrow and desire. "We broke up before the shooting." Than she pulled Castle into another kiss that was even more passionate then the first and this time Castle returned the kiss as best as he could in his current condition.

They were both so lost in the moment and all the pure joy and fear that filled it that they did not notice a male nurse who was walking past the room who stopped and took a picture with his cellphone camera. He then made his way to the elevator and once he was alone he sent the picture to a contact number on his phone along with a text message.

_Cover established. Both Targets in same location. Proceeding with operation._

**Well that was chapter six. Sorry again that it was late and short but I wrote it out once and it didn't feel right or in character so I deleted it and rewrote the story after watching some season three episodes. The dialog just didn't feel right to me and for one thing Beckett ran away at one point and needed Lanie to sort her out before going back to Castle and I don't know that may have been in character but it felt a little too much like beating a dead horse at this point. I may have to go back in and make major edits to this chapter because I am not sure of it at all. Please let me know what you think and if you think it is out of character or something needs to be changed please leave a review or PM explaining why. **

**Okay I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Thanks for reading and please leave a review. **

**Thanks once again to caskettfan5 for all the wonderful beta help.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Kate Beckett could not believe it she was actually kissing Richard Castle and it wasn't to distract thugs! She may have started the kiss but she still found it hard to believe. She had spent so much time convincing herself that it was a bad idea and truth be told when they first met it would have been, that now that it was finally happening she had a hard time believing it was real and it was not just another dream that she would wake up from at two in the morning. Still the longer she kissed him the more of her inhibitions dropped away and the less she wanted to stop, in fact at this moment the part of her brain that wanted to run had pretty much shut down and she wanted to go much farther then just kissing but she knew they couldn't in a hospital bed. Still she was disappointed when Castle reached up and forced her to stop.

"We have to stop." He grunted out and Beckett could tell that thankfully he was just as turned on as she was.

"What is the matter am I too much for you to handle old man?" Beckett teased with a smirk.

"You just wait until I get out of this bed and then I will show you who is too much to handle." Castle retorted and for a moment he forgot just how badly he was hurt or how much his life was going to change because of it. Beckett leaned down to kiss Castle again again but he groaned out and a look of pain shot over his face.

"Castle are you alright?" Beckett asked concerned as she pulled back.

"I'm fine." Castle winced as a sharp pain once again shot through his body. "It's just that I still have some feeling down there and they put a chathiter in me and I am getting little excited." He explained sheepishly.

"Castle I am so sorry, I didn't think of that!" Beckett said standing up and reaching for the nurse call button.

"You don't need to call anyone." Castle injected quickly, the fewer people knew about this the happier he would be. "But would you mind if we just talked for a while?"

"Sure." Beckett replied as she sat back down in the chair and looked over at her "boyfriend?". Was that what he really was? They had only been together for about five minutes and yet the description seemed to go too far and not far enough at the same time when it came to defining their relationship. Maybe "partner" was a better term, after all it was always how Castle had described them. Yes, she decided she liked "partner" a lot better. She wasn't the best when it came to talking and at the moment the idea filled her with fear and she would much rather be showing him how she felt but he had taken a bullet for her and he was in pain so she could force herself to talk to him about something real , even if it did scare the hell out of her. Still she could not resist one last tease. "But once you get out of here you had better be ready to make it up to me."

"That's one of the things I wanted to talk to you about." Castle said with a sigh and Beckett couldn't remember seeing him this unsure of himself and frightened since he had told her he was digging into her mother's case without permission. "There is no judgment here and I want you to think hard before you answer this question. There is a chance I will be in this wheelchair for the rest of my life and that means I will not be as active as you need me to be, will you be okay with that?"

Beckett had to look away while she thought about this. Logically she had known since she had first heard from Doctor Baker that there was a good chance of this but hearing it put into words by Castle made it all too real. If she went any farther she could be signing up for a lifetime of helping him get in and out of bed, helping him clean himself up, while it may seem harsh to think so selfishly the truth had to be faced that their sex life would not be as active as she had always dreamed it would be. That was a lot to take in. Still she had to think about it because if she jumped in after this and then found it was too much to handle she knew it would break him, so if she couldn't handle it she needed to figure it out and break things off now. Then the even scarier thought of what he would be like after he was taken off the pain meds that were keeping him mellow crossed her mind. Could she deal with him when he was depressed, what if he lashed out at her at some point and blamed her for his condition, could she handle that.

Beckett was now scared to death and was on the verge of running and then she lifted up her head and caught sight of his face, he wasn't looking at her either. She could tell he was trying to keep his emotions under control and keep his face neutral so she wouldn't feel pressured one way or the other. The fact that he was willing to let her break his heart just so she could avoid being unhappy caused her own heart to hammer in her chest like a drum at a death metal concert.

Beckett then thought back to all the things that had made her fall for this man in the first place and when she took the time to think about them she surprised herself. Yes it had started out as a mere physical attraction and she had been tempted to take up his offer of a one night stand and just get it out of her system but now she was glad she hadn't. She had gotten to know him and he had not been a shallow as she had thought and the things about him that made her kiss him had nothing to do with his physical condition. She was still attracted to him but it had gone beyond that quickly and she didn't even notice. He was a good father, much better then a playboy like him had any right to be. He was kind and always seemed to be looking for things he could do to help people. While she knew at first he was just trying to make her think he was a good person at some point he had changed and he had become the better person that at first he was just trying to act like. He felt for the victims and their families but he still tried to pick her spirits up when they were working a hard case instead of giving in to his own feelings of depression. He was always there for the ones that he loved.

Castle didn't have to go to LA with her and it would have been easy for him to have pretended that he had never dug into her mother's case but he didn't he told her because he loved her. They nearly died in a freezer holding each other and still he didn't say a word when she went off with Josh because her being happy was more important to him then his being happy. Beckett asked herself if she could make the same claim. Looking at his face again the answer came back "yes". She didn't care if it meant her life didn't go as planned at this moment, he had helped make her life worth living again instead of it being a mere existence and for some reason she could not understand she seemed to do the same for him. Despite all the hardships that were still ahead she knew one thing for certain, she wanted to be with this man for the rest of her life and she didn't care if he could walk or not, or if he put on weight, or even if he got moody and angry sometimes. Was this love? She was not sure because she had never felt this strongly about anyone before but she decided she couldn't live with herself if she gave into fear and walked away and she needed Castle to know that.

Beckett didn't know how to put these thoughts into words but she decided she had to try so she took a breath and then she spoke calmly and clearly. "Castle look at me." Castle turned his head and she looked deep into his blue eyes so she could make it clear that she meant every word she was about to say.

"Castle I don't care about any of that. None of that is what makes you my partner. I don't care how hard it is, you are it for me and I am not leaving you."

"But Kate..." Castle objected using her first name, something he rarely did. "You are letting yourself in for a life of hardship, how can you live with that?"

"How could she live with that?" This question made Beckett angry and her eyes filled with a heat that was normally only directed at New York's most hardened killers. "How can you even ask me that!" She demanded and before Castle could answer she continued. "Would you have left me if our positions were reversed?!"

"No but you deserve better then a cripple." Castle objected.

"Well did it ever cross your mind that I think you deserve better then me?! I am an emotional cripple and riddled with issues that you always have to push me to talk about. It seems to me someone as open as you deserves someone he doesn't have to force to open up every time they have a problem!"

Castle sighed and then looked away from her for a second and when he spoke his voice was just above a whisper. "I guess I just can't understand why you would want to be with someone like me when you could have someone like Josh or Demming."

"Because I love you, moron!" Beckett yelled and as she stood up and stormed out of the room,she didn't intend to leave for long but she needed a walk to cool down. She couldn't understand how Castle could ask her to do any less for him then he would do for her. What more could she do to prove she was in this all the way? Suddenly she had an idea but she would have to leave the hospital in order to put her plan into action. Still she figured that would be okay. She turned back to say goodbye to Castle but when she looked she saw that he had fallen asleep with his head on his chest, the meds must have put him under. He was snoring loudly and part of Beckett flinched at this, so this was what she was in for for the rest of her life? Well she could live with it. It would be a small price to pay if it meant being with someone she had such controllable feelings for.

Beckett didn't want Castle to think she had run off if he woke up and she was not there so she scanned the room and on the small off white plastic table on the left hand side of his bed she spotted a pen and a pad of paper next to a Giddeon Bible that had been left there. She picked up a piece of paper and began to write on it.

_Castle I care about you more then anyone in my life. I care about you the same way you care about me,I need you to understand this. I am not running away, I will be here for you no matter what. There is something I need to take care of but as the terminator says "I'll be back." _

Beckett smiled to herself after she wrote that last line, Castle had a way even when he was asleep of bringing out her fun side even when she was kind of mad at him. She gently placed the piece of paper under Castle's left hand so he couldn't miss it if he woke up and then she turned and left the room. What she was about to do may be the stupidest, most impulsive thing she had done since getting a tattoo for no other reason then her father had told her she couldn't have one but she knew she wanted to do it,she just had to get the pieces in place for the morning.

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In the sewers underneath the hospital there ran an old rusty gas pipe that needed constant maintenance in order to keep it from becoming a danger to the city.

What looked like a city utility work was working on the pipe at that moment. He secured a metallic gray coloured substance that had the consistency of silly putty to the pipe.

Sticking out of this substance was a short black antenna. Etched onto this substance was the letter C followed by the number 4.

**Well that is Chapter seven, I hop you like it. All your feedback has been amazing, thanks a bunch and please continue to leave it. Every review and PM is very helpful. I am aware that the last few chapters need to be edited and I will try to get to that today.**

**Thanks for read and please let me know what you think.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for the great beta help.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Kate Beckett had not been thinking clearly when she left the hospital, this was something that was rapidly becoming a bad habit for her. By the time she got back to the hospital about three hours after she left visiting hours were over and she was not allowed to go up to see Castle. If she had still been a cop she would have tried using her badge to get past the red tape but it was with some frustration that she remembered her badge was now locked in Gates' desk. So after giving the nurse at the front desk a piece of her mind she had no choice but to return home. Still it was not all bad, she got her first full night of sleep in her own bed in weeks. Still when Beckett woke up she couldn't wait to get back to the hospital so she quickly showered and changed her clothes and then picking up her overnight bag that had something very special in it she headed out of her apartment door locking it behind her, unsure of when she would return.

When Beckett got to the hospital she had to wait outside of Castle's room while a group of nurses changed his sheets and cleaned him up, it seemed that when he couldn't get up on his own to go to the bathroom accidents were bound to happen. The waiting only added to Beckett's frustration and nervousness. Then to add insult to injury while she couldn't hear every word being said in the room she could tell that the nurses were flirting with Castle and instead of telling them to shut up he was being his normal charming self. This did not make Beckett a happy camper when she was finally allowed in to see Castle.

"Hey, I missed you." Castle said as she entered the room.

"Really? Because you seem to have plenty of company." Beckett replied rolling her eyes.

"Kate are you jealous of my nurses?" Castle asked and his mouth took on a cocky half smirk that Beckett didn't much care for.

"No, I am just saying they were behaving in a very unprofessional manor is all." Beckett said defensively.

"So relationship Beckett is an extremely jealous woman, I will have to remember this in future." Castle said thoughtfully and Beckett could see there was no winning this argument and it would only make him more cocky if she tried so she changed topics.

"Aren't you going to ask me what is in the bag?" Beckett asked holding up her overnight bag for Castle to see.

"Okay, what's in the bag?" Castle asked deciding that it was best to comply with Beckett's wishes for the moment, after all she could tease him too and make it very painful for him and there wasn't much he could do about it while he was confined to a hospital bed.

"Clothes." Beckett answered cheekily as she made her way over and sat down in the small reclining chair by Castle's bed.

"Why?" Castle asked puzzled.

"Because I am not leaving here until you do." Beckett stated simply.

"You don't have to do that, you have a life to get back to." Castle said with a sigh.

"Don't you dare say anything like that again!" Beckett responded and she was back to feeling the same anger she had the night before. "You are my life. You have stood by me through every thing. Hell we have nearly died together more then once so don't you dare tell me I shouldn't be here!"

"I am sorry." Castle said with a sigh looking down at his legs. "I guess I just don't understand why you would want to sign up for this as your future." He said as he pointed to his useless legs with his right hand.

"I want to show you something." Beckett said and she reached into her bag and pulled out a rather large photo album with a floral pattern on it's cover and opened it up almost exactly to the middle and placed it in Castle's lap for him to see.

Castle slowly raised his eyes and looked at the photos within. Judging by the clothes they all seemed to have been taken in the 80s and were slightly faded. Castle didn't recognize anyone in the photos at first but they seemed to be taken at several different family gatherings from what Castle could tell, finally Castle saw someone who must have been a young Jim Beckett and then he saw a little girl in various dresses who must have been detective Kate Beckett as a child, she was cute kid Castle thought but he would never be stupid enough to tell Beckett that. Everyone seemed to be laughing and having fun and at the center of each of the photos was an older man who looked to be in his early sixties and was dressed slightly out of date when compared to the rest of the people in the photos. He was slightly overweight, had black slicked back hair, was wearing a old style dark suit the kind that were in fashion in the 1950s, but the thing Castle noticed most about the man was that he was in a wheelchair.

"That is my great uncle Henry." Beckett explained pointing to the man. Castle wasn't sure what her point was so he just swallowed and let her continue. "He was confined to a wheelchair from the time he was twenty-seven until the day he died after he got hit by a car. All the kids loved him because he was one of the happiest people I ever met and he loved kids. Here he is reading Sherlock Holmes to us." Beckett said as she pointed to a picture of all the kids sitting on the floor in a circle looking up at what looked to be a very excited Henry reading from a book. "He is the reason I fell in love with mystery novels at a young age, so in a way I have him to thank for bringing us together." Beckett explained gently.

"I don't see what this has to do with us." Castle said softly. "You are not a child and I am not your uncle Henry"

"Take a closer look at the photos and tell me what you see in every one of them." Beckett said pointing at one of the photos. Castle took a look and it only took him a second to notice in all the photos standing there beside or behind Henry was a woman who looked a few years younger then him with a broad smile on her face.

"That is my great aunt Sally." Beckett explained gently pointing at the woman. "She and my great uncle Henry were married for over fifty years and while things were not always easy for them they were very happy. So don't you dare tell me I have no idea what I am getting into or that it is not worth it!" Beckett said forcefully.

Beckett then looked up and saw a single tear making it's way down Castle's right check. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have doubted you and I should have respected your choices." Castle whispered.

"It's okay." Beckett soothed as she leaned over and cradled Castle's head to her shoulder. "You have had a big shock and you thought you were looking out for me but I need you to understand something. Leaving you would kill me so I don't care how hard it gets I have to be here, please never ask me to leave again.

"I promise." Castle said as he moved his head and looked up at her. Castle then moved his head forward as much as he could and captured Kate's lips in a sweet, gentle kiss. Beckett started to kiss him back and that is when she heard it, it was the sound of a throat being cleared.

"Are we interrupting something?" It was the clear voice of Martha Rodger, Castle's mother. Beckett's face flushed red with embarrassment and she quickly pulled back from Castle and sat down in her chair and tried to regain her composure. Castle quickly closed the photo album and handed it to her, he knew how private she was and that she most likely wouldn't want his mother to see her family photos, Beckett placed the photo album beside her chair and then when she looked up things got worse. Standing beside Martha was Alexis, who was looking somewhat uncomfortable herself.

"I'm sorry...This must come as a surprise to you and this isn't how we wanted you to find out." Beckett stammered and suddenly the detective who stood up to hardened killers daily found herself unable to meet the gazes of a teenage girl and an old woman.

"No it's isn't." Martha said and since Beckett wasn't looking at her she could not tell that the actress was smiling.

"I was more shocked that he took Gina with us last summer, I was sure you two had started dating in secret just before your apartment got bombed last year." Alexis stated simply.

This was so much worse then what Beckett had feared, she now placed her head in her hands and her face turned even more red. Had she been so stupid that she was the last one to see that she was in a relationship with Castle?!

"Oh come on dear, there is nothing to be ashamed of." Martha said as she walked over and placed a hand on Beckett's shoulder causing the younger woman to look up at her. "We are both happy for you, aren't we Alexis?" Martha said turning to look at her granddaughter.

"Yeah we are." Alexis said with a small smile and then she turned to look at her father. "Still just so you know after this you can't tease me about that time you caught me making out with Ashley any more."

"Alright." Castle said with a small laugh. He then turned his attention to the leather pouch that's long strap was slung over her shoulder. "Did you bring it?" He asked excitedly.

"Yep, I got your laptop and those dvds you asked for." Alexis said with a smile as she handed the container over to her father.

"Excellent." Castle said rubbing his hands together, he then turned to talk to Beckett. "Look I know you want to be here for me but I also understand that they will not give you time off of work just because I have been shot. So since Alexis and Mother are here why don't you go into work before you get into too much trouble. I promise I will be okay."

"About that." Beckett said as she turned her head away because she could not look any of them in the eyes as she said what she needed to say. She had been dreading this moment but she knew lying was not the way forward so she decided to just come out with it. "It looks like I may have lost my job."

"What?!" Everyone cried out at once.

Beckett then looked up at them and saw the shocked look on their faces and she knew she had to explain in detail. "I'll explain but this is hard for me so could you please not interrupt until I finish?" Beckett asked as her eyes pleaded for mercy. The three people in the room with her were too shocked to do anything other then nod their agreement with this plan. Beckett took a few breaths to calm herself and then began to slowly explain what had happened. She didn't like revealing it all to Castle's mother and daughter but she knew these people were going to be part of her family at some point so she didn't see the point in hiding anything from them. She decided to lessen the shock by telling them what her father said about it being unlikely that she would face criminal charges but she left out the part about how that meeting had ended in disaster, that part was between her and her father and no on else.

When Beckett finally finished she expected to get questions from Castle but instead she saw anger in his eyes. "I am thinking of a word that describes your new captain and it rhymes with witch." He said at last through clenched teeth.

"It wasn't her fault, even if she knew me I don't think she could have fought this." Beckett tried to explain.

"Do you think it would do any good if I talked to the mayor?" Castle asked, desperate for something to do.

"I don't think so, this is an internal police matter and I don't want to get special treatment just because of you." Beckett said as she looked over at Castle.

"Special treatment?!" Castle raged. "After everything you have done for this city they can overlook a small infraction like this!"

"Listen." Beckett said as she remained calm and she placed her hands on top of Castle's right hand. "I can't lie and say I am okay with this but deep down I knew there was a chance this would happen, I made my choice and I am fine with living with it." She then looked into Castle's eyes so he could see she didn't regret a thing. "Besides." She said with a smile. "As you said they would not have given me time off to be here with you and now I have all the time off I need."

"I guess but I still don't have to like it." Castle said with a sigh.

"Do you have any idea what you are going to do next?" Alexis asked coming up and giving Beckett a comforting hug. This shocked Kate since for the first time in over a week it was the girl comforting her and not the other way around.

"Yeah I am going to go back to law school and get a job in the DA's office. If I can't put murders behind bars one way I will do it another." She said forcing on a smile and releasing herself from the redhead's hug.

"That's the spirit, never say die!" Martha said enthusiastically.

"Maybe this will result in a new twist in the Nikki Heat books." Castle said excitedly. "I am sure you will be the best prosecutor this city has ever seen."

"Yeah the crooks will not even know what hit them!" Alexis agreed.

Suddenly for the first time in a long time Beckett felt happy, there was something about this family that had a way of picking her spirits up and making her feel glad she was alive even when her spirits were at their lowest. She had never really considered changing her name before but seeing all the love this messed up insane family had for her made her start thinking about it for the first time in her life. She knew they had a long way to go before they would be ready but for a split second she found herself looking forward to the day when she would join this happy family and wear the name like a badge of honor. Still she didn't feel like dwelling on these thoughts so she turned her mind to something more practical.

"Hold on I don't have the job yet." She said with a laugh. "I haven't even gotten the degree or passed the bar yet."

"For you it will be a piece of cake." Castle said with pride written all over his face.

"That may be but do you mind if we talk about something besides my life for a change?" She asked.

"Yeah I am the one who got shot, I should be the center of attention at this party." Castle said playfully.

"Okay Mister Center of attention, what do you want to do?" Beckett asked looking over at the man she was now one hundred percent sure she was in love with.

"I'll tell you what I want." Castle said as he opened his laptop and sat it down on his lap, He then pushed the button to open the disc drive. "Alexis hand me those Chuck dvds, I missed most of last season because I was working with future DA Beckett over here." This got a laugh from everyone and the family was so caught up in being happy they didn't notice the same male nurse who had walked past the room a day ago walk past again.

Once again he waited until he was alone in the elevator before typing out a text message.

_All targets present. _

A moment later a reply came.

_Get out now._

The nurse then hit the button for the lobby, he did not want to be anywhere near the building five minutes from now.

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Across the street from the hospital an old green pickup truck sat and in it watching the entrance of the hospital there sat a strong silent man with a mean square face. In his lap out of sight of the crowds he held what looked like a controller for a remote control car, it was in fact a detonator for a small explosive charge. Normally he would have used a cellphone as they were harder to trace but the signal of a cellphone would not reach all the way down to the explosives under the street. Still despite that he like this plan. He knew the targets were in the hospital and the gas pipes were old and in need of repair so no one would be able to prove that this wasn't just a tragic accident. Sure some people may suspect but there would be no proof, so that would not mean anything. It was a far better plan then using a sniper at a cop's funeral. Whatever idiot had thought of that needed to be skinned alive for being that stupid the man thought to himself.

At last he saw his partner exit the building and cross the street. This was it, time to end this thorn in their side once and for all. He calmly pulled the trigger on the detonator and set the small amount of C4 off.

**Sorry this chapter is a day late. I had to rework a few things in it and in my plan for future chapters. All of your feedback as been great but a special shout out goes to Caskettfan5, your feedback has been amazing and has helped me patch up several plot problems with this story. This story would not be what it is without you,thanks a bunch.**

**Thanks again to everyone who leaves a review.**

**Thank you so much for reading and see you next time.**

**Manny thanks go out to Caskettfan5 for bataing this chapter.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The man pulled the trigger on the detonator and the small charge of C-4 went off, However it did not produce the results he had expected. The truck burst into white hot flames all around him and the last thing he experienced in his life was the feeling of a piece of steel passing through his brain.

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Inside Castle's hospital room the occupants knew nothing of the events that had taken place outside. The explosion could be neither heard nor seen from Castle's room and the most they knew about it was a page that came over the intercom about some sort of emergency outside of the hospital but they didn't pay much attention to the page since it seemed to have nothing to do with them. It was about ten minutes after the event that Beckett got a call on her cellphone, checking the I.D she saw it was from Esposito so she stepped out of the room to take the call.

"Yo, Beckett where are you?" Esposito asked skipping all pleasantries.

"I am at the hospital with Castle, why?" Beckett asked puzzled and a little worried.

"Is everyone there alright?"

"Yes, of course they are. What is going on Esposito?" Beckett asked and she didn't need her training as a detective to tell her something was very wrong.

"Because a truck just blew up across the street from you and from the way the people calling into 911 described it, it sounds like it was a bomb."

Damn it! Beckett thought to herself. How much more danger was she going to put everyone around her in? Maybe it would have been better for everyone if the sniper had just killed her. Still she could not change the past, she had to focus on the task at hand and even if she was off the force she had to know what was going on.

"Are you on your way here?" She asked switching herself over to cop mode so she could hold down the panic that was building inside her.

"Ryan and I are pulling up to the curve now. It's a real mess down here." Esposito reported.

"Okay, I'll be down there in a few minutes." Beckett said and she didn't give Esposito time to argue with her before she hung up her phone. She then made her way into Castle's room quickly and drew the curtains, just in case there was a sniper waiting to take a shot. Beckett knew that whoever the "Dragon" was he would have no choice but to assume at this point that Castle knew everything she did, so if she was in danger so was Castle. She tried to keep her composure but it's hard to pass off closing a curtain in the middle of the day as normal.

"Beckett what's going on?" Castle asked looking up from his laptop.

"I'm not sure but something may be up and I need you all to stay in this room." Beckett said looking at all three people crowded around Castle's bed. She didn't want to give them the details if she didn't have to, after all she didn't have all the facts yet and there was no point in panicking them if it turned out to be nothing. Of course she knew there was about a zero percent chance that that would turn out to be the case but she was grasping for any hope you could find.

"What does that mean Kate, what has really happened?!" Alexis demanded with fear written all over her face. Suddenly Beckett felt very bad for trying to use such vague public relations double speak on these people who she cared so deeply for. Yes, it was what she was trained to do as a cop. Confirm nothing, wait for the investigation to be over, and the higher ups to make an official statement to avoid a panic but she could trust Castle's family and she owed it to them to be honest with them.

"It looks like a bomb may have gone off across the street and if it did then Castle or I were the most likely targets. I don't know any more then that right now." Beckett explained keeping her cool, that was one part of her training she was sticking to. Letting them see how worried she was would not help anyone.

"Oh my god." Martha said bringing her hand to her mouth.

"This building is now surrounded by cops so you are safe for the moment, I am going to go downstairs and find out what is going on. If there is any danger I will make sure you are all moved okay." Beckett explained taking charge of the situation, this was what she was best at. Not staying on the sidelines and crying, she wasn't much good at comforting people, but taking charge of a crisis and attacking it with a clear head, that was something she could do.

Everyone nodded that they understood and she turned to head out of the room.

"Kate, be careful." She heard Castle say and she turned to face him. She knew he only used her first name when he was really worried so she turned to reassure him.

"I will be, don't worry there are cops all over the place now." She said giving him a small smile and then she turned and left.

Beckett didn't hear Castle mumble to himself under his breath. "There were cops at Montgomery's funeral."

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When Beckett finally managed to get down to the street after what felt like hours, it was chaos. Instead of an orderly New York street it looked like a third world war zone. There were barricades up blocking off the street, emergency vehicles and workers everywhere, and dozens of uniformed cops holding off the crowds and the press. With no new news for almost a week the press excitement over the shooting of world famous crime writer Richard Castle had died down somewhat but now with a bomb going off out side of his hospital room it seemed that the press was interested again. If anything there was more press there now then there had been a week ago, Beckett even spotted a couple of news choppers hovering over the street. Still she did not have time to focus on that, she had a job to do. She scanned the crowd and finally spotted Ryan and Esposito near the smoldering remains of what had once been a pickup truck. Water and foam was dripping off the truck from the fire department putting it out and as she draw closer she could make out the form of her best friend Lanie, the medical examiner working on something in the truck that may have once been a human body.

She pushed her way through the crowd and made it to detectives Ryan and Esposito. "What have we got?" She asked. Fortunately neither man decided to question her presence at the scene and instead they slipped back into their old chemistry as if nothing had happened and she was still their boss.

"Bomb squad and fire department just finished clearing everything. We have one victim, dead and he appears to have been the driver." Ryan reported.

"Any idea what set it off?"

"The bomb squad said it looked like a small charge of C-4 planted on the gas tank but they will have to run some tests to be sure." Espisoto answered, he seemed to be a little worried that Beckett was there but he wasn't saying anything.

"Any idea who this guy was?" Beckett asked turning to her best friend.

"Well hello to you too." Lanie said turning to face her and looking somewhat annoyed. "I haven't heard from you in over two days and that is all you have to say?"

"Look I am sorry." Beckett said looking down at her friend, she really was but she didn't have time for a heart to heart. "But Castle and I may both be in danger right now so we need to work fast."

"Okay." Lanie said with a sigh returning her attention to the body. "But don't think you have gotten out of talking to me about everything that has happened."

"Understood." Beckett replied, excepting her friend's terms. "Now what can you tell me about this guy."

"Not much." Lanie reported becoming all business. "So far no I.D and he clothes are burnt to a crisp, all I can tell you is that he is a six foot four male in his mid forties."

"Okay thanks." Beckett said and she returned her attention to Ryan and Esposito. "This doesn't make sense, if he was after me or Castle why did the bomb go off here?"

"No idea. Plus even if the truck was parked right next to the hospital there is no way it would have done enough damage to kill Castle or you, even if you were in the lobby." Esposito pointed out putting his former military training to good use.

"Also it was a suicide bombing, is the Dragon really so powerful that people will go on suicide runs for him?" Ryan asked and this thought sent a shiver down everyone's spines. They all knew that if the "Dragon" really did have that kind of power and loyalty from his men then it would be next to impossible to keep anyone safe from him.

"Nothing about this makes any sense." Beckett said as she ran her hands through her hair, she was getting frustrated, she needed a lead. That was when they heard it, a uniformed officer calling for them from an alley about twenty-five yards down the street. They all run down the street with their weapons drawn, not taking any chances and the officer showed them what he had found. What the officer had found was a person, He was a young man who looked to be of Chinese decent knocked out and handcuffed to a dumpster about halfway down the alley. He was wearing a nurse's uniform from the hospital and hanging off of it was an I.D tag that had the name Chang on it.

The officer explained that he had checked the man and he didn't have any weapons on him and he still had his wallet and cellphone as well as his name badge, that and the handcuffs left no chance that this was just a random mugging.

"Do you think someone used him to get into the hospital?" Ryan asked.

Beckett thought about this for a moment and then dismissed the idea. "No if they did this to him they would have killed him and taken his I.D." She pointed out.

"Then what does that leave, who did this?" Esposito asked puzzled.

Beckett thought about this for a moment and then she mentally kicked herself for being so stupid and forgetting her training. She suddenly remembered where she had seen this guy before but she had been too upset and distracted by Castle to do anything about it. He could have been killed and she would have completely missed it. Thank goodness her mind had filed his face away in her memory even if she had not followed her training. He had walked past Castle's room at least a couple of times, she should have noticed and done something about a nurse that kept walking passed a room without going in but she had not been thinking straight. Damn it, how could she miss something like this? Still she needed proof so she turned to Ryan as she finished bagging the wallet and cellphone as evidence. She handed Ryan the I.D tag. "Go check with the hospital and see if he was still supposed to be working."

"You got it." Ryan replied as he turned and headed back up the alley the way they had come.

"What are you thinking?" Esposito asked.

"I don't know but the story doesn't make sense." Beckett said turning back to look at the man.

"The story doesn't make sense?" Esposito mimicked. "You have been spending way too much time with Castle." This got a smile from from Beckett. "Should we call the EMTs?" Esposito asked.

"Not yet, this guy may be our only lead and I want to ask him some questions first." Beckett stated coldly. She knew she was pushing it but it's not like the NYPD could do anything else to her and all that mattered now was taking down the Dragon. If he did have people inside the hospital then he would now know that he could hurt her by going after Castle and his family. It was total war now, Backing off was not an option, the only way Beckett could keep Castle, Alexis, and Martha safe to say nothing of her father was to take this monster down and she would do whatever it took to make that happen or die trying.

A few minutes latter Ryan returned, he was running and and came to a stop a couple of feet in front of Beckett. "He has worked there for the past six months and he wasn't supposed to leave work until nine tonight." Ryan huffed.

"So you were right, he is one of their people." Esposito said fixing a cold stare, it was the same way he used to look at terrorists from a sniper scope when he was deployed, cold and without mercy.

"If that is true how did he get like this?" Ryan asked.

"Let's ask him." Beckett said bending down. She perched on her heels in front of him, not wanting to sit all the way down in the filthy alley. She then slapped the man awake. He slowly came to and when he did he had a look of terror in his eyes as he scanned all three unfriendly faces.

"What do you want with me?" He asked in panic.

"Don't play dumb we know you work for the dragon." Beckett said harshly, she decided to put him on the defensive right away.

"I don't know what you are talking about." Chang protested but he could see none of the three people standing in front of him were buying it, still he didn't know what to do other then stick to his story. That is until he remembered who Beckett was. "Hey, you should be dead!" He let out with a shocked gasp before he could stop himself.

Good he is not a pro, must be someone they had to hire at the last minute when the sniper didn't work. This will be easier then I thought. "Well guess what, your little car bomb went off across the street and even if it had gotten to the hospital it still was not powerful enough to have killed me. Looks like your people screwed up and left you to take the heat." Beckett said coldly.

"I have nothing to say to you." He said not knowing what else to do.

"That's fine" Esposito said taking a step forward so he towered over the man sitting in the grime of the alley. "You are here on a visa to go to medical school. You are foreign national who just admitted to being a part of a terrorist plot on US soil. I am sure they will get all the answers we need out of you at Gitmo."

" G G G Gitmo?!" The man stammered, and he was clearly scared out of his mind, this was not a well trained operative.

"That's right you will be sent there with all the other hardcore terrorists, or you can talk to us." Ryan said deciding to play good cop no mater how much it churned his stomach.

"Look you don't understand what these people will do to me and my family if I talk to you." Chang stammered.

"Don't tell me about what these people do!" Beckett raged grabbing the Chang by the shirt and bringing him as close to her now red face as she could without uncuffing him from the dumpster. "These people murdered my mother. They have gone after me, and tried to harm the people I love! I know what they will do and I will do far worse to you if you don't start talking! Who is the Dragon!"

"I don't know!" Chang yelled out clearly scared out of his wits. "I have never heard of a dragon. I was hired by a man whose name I don't know to help Mike by spying on you and that writer guy and letting him know when to plant the bomb on the gas pipe! All I know about the man who hired me is that he works for someone powerful who could get my family out of china and clear my debts to the Tongs! That is all I know I swear!" He blurted out.

"The Tongs got you into the country and got you a Visa and now you owe them more then you could pay back?" Ryan asked.

"Yeah." Chang said looking down at the dirt. "They were going to kill me and my family was being persecuted because I left. Then this guy I know who is a go between for the Tongs and someone even they are afraid of offers to wipe it all out and get my family out if I do something for him. What would you have done?!" He demanded looking up at all three of the unfriendly faces.

"Not set up a whole hospital to get wiped off the map." Esposito replied with disgust.

"Wait, if the bomb was planted on a gas line how did it end up on the truck?" Ryan asked puzzled.

"I don't know. All I do know is that I was told to get out and I was running down this alley when I felt a sharp pain on the back of my head and then I woke up here. I have no idea what went wrong."

"Okay, I believe you." Beckett said and then she motioned to Esposito. "Uncuff him and take him to see the EMTs." Esposito nodded then bent down to remove the cuffs.

A few minutes later the three detectives stood in a semicircle just outside the alley, thinking about what they had just learned.

"Well the bomb squad is now checking every inch of those pipes for any sign of other bombs." Esposito reported. "Also our friend will be going to jail for a long time."

"This doesn't make sense,who moved the bomb and knocked out Chang?" Ryan asked clearly confused.

Beckett sighed and then looked at her partners. "I know this is going to sound crazy and Castle like but I think there is a third party involved who wants to take down the Dragon as much as we do and they moved the bomb."

"You are right that does sound crazy." Esposito said.

"Still I guess whoever this guy is he has to have made some enemies maybe one of them refused to take it laying down." Ryan pointed out.

"Still why not just disarm the bomb, why plant it on the truck?" Esposito asked.

"Because whoever it is wanted to send a message to the Dragon, that they could undo his best plans." Beckett said.

"Now you really sound like Castle." Esposito observed.

"It's the only story that makes sense of all the facts we have." Beckett maintained but before anyone else could say anything Beckett heard the one sound in the world she didn't want to hear at that moment.

"Detective Beckett, What are you doing here?!" It was the voice of a pissed off Captain Victoria Gates.

Beckett turned to face her captain. "Sir I was just trying to find out what was going on." She explained.

"You are suspended, do you not understand what that word means?" Gates asked coldly.

"Sir people that I care about are in danger because of my mother's case. I will not sit around while these people come after the people I love with bombs!" Beckett shot back.

"First of all this is now the FBI's case." Gates explained with a cold fire in her eyes. "Second my orders will be obeyed, and third I will not have this case thrown out because it was worked by a suspended detective."

"Sir, these people are coming after me I can't sit around and do nothing." Beckett was no so desperate that she was resorting to pleading but it had no effect.

"Even if I wanted to let you work this case it is out of my hands." Gates Replied sternly. "If I see you anywhere near this case again I will have you arrested, is that understood?!"

"Yes Sir." Beckett replied unable to look her captain in the eyes.

Gates then signaled for a uniformed officer. "Officer Decker, please escort Detective Beckett back to the hospital and away from this crime scene." The officer nodded and tried to lead Beckett away by the elbow but she pulled it out of his grasp.

"I know the way!' She said shooting the office a death glare. As she made her way to the hospital angry tears began pouring down her face. She was angry with her captain and with herself. Beckett had never felt so helpless it was clear now that these people also wanted Castle dead just to be safe and so even if she gave up her life that would do nothing to protect Castle. She and everyone she loved were in danger and there was not a damn thing she could do about it! The moment she crossed the police tape she completely broke down and began to cry slumped over on the sidewalk. She had never felt worse, tears would not help at the moment but they were all she had left. She knew now she was fighting a war that could not be won, she had gotten lucky today but that luck could not hold and at some point the Dragon would get her and everyone she loved. All her life would ever amount to was a bunch of dead bodies and nothing else left behind. At least if she had pushed Castle away he would have lived but she knew now it was too late for that he was a target. That was the thing that got her moving again. She had to protect Castle, she couldn't let him die because of her. She would find a way to save him. With these thoughts on her mind she picked herself up and headed with a determined stride into the hospital.

Kate Beckett may not have been a cop any more but she knew she could not let that stop her. She had to take down the "Dragon" once and for all. She had no idea how she was going to do it, all she knew was that there was no other way forward and she had to do something. Kate Beckett was going to war.

**Sorry to keep you waiting for the whole weekend, I didn't mean to and no it was not because I could not think of a way out of the cliffhanger. That cliffhanger and the way it was resolved along with Castle being in a wheelchair were the first things that popped into my head when I got the idea in the shower. I just got busy and this chapter took me forever to write. Sorry.**

**As always your feedback has been amazing and I thank everyone who leaves feedback and follows this story. You have helped make this story better and you are the reason I keep writing.**

**Thank you so much for taking the time to read and leave feedback, you guys are the best.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan 5 for Beta help with this chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

When the elevator doors slid open as it reached the floor Castle's room was on Kate Beckett was shocked by what she saw. Instead of the two uniformed police officers that had been guarding the floor all week she saw a single man in a suit of medium height and build facing the elevator and he was reaching for a gun that was on his belt. Beckett's mind quickly raced through all the possible explanations of who this man could be and why he was on this floor along with what had happened to the two officers and the worst one was also the most likely, the explosion had been a diversion to get the cops paying attention to the street instead of the hospital, This was one of the "Dragon's" men come to kill Castle and her. He had a gun and Beckett didn't so she had to act fast if she was going to stop him.

Beckett quickly stepped out of the elevator, the man was about two feet in front of her and reaching for his gun on his left side with his right hand. This meant that he was not completely focused on Beckett at that moment and she used this to her advantage. Beckett closed the distance between them and brought her right leg up into a high kick aimed at the man's left wrist, she used the kick to knock his hand away from the gun. This stopped him from getting to the gun for a second but when Beckett's foot came down to the floor she was slightly off center. She moved fast to correct this, she took a half step to her right so she was facing the man again but he was stepping back and reaching for his gun with his right hand and was now in a defensive posture. Beckett kicked her leg out straight ahead of her and the heel of her right boot connected sharply with the man's left knee. He let out a short sharp cry of pain and staggered backwards but by this time he had pulled out his gun, he aimed it at Beckett. This was a fight Beckett could not give up or lose so she did the only thing she could think of, she went for the man's right wrist with both of he hands and began twisting. This may not have been the best move when he was pointing the gun at her but she was too full of fear and adrenaline to think clearly, she was in a life or death struggle to protect the man she loved and she didn't really care at that moment if she took a bullet. Still luck seemed to be on her side since she was able to twist the pistol up and to the left so it was pointing away from her. It seemed that he had been expecting the fight to be over once he had gotten to his gun and Beckett had caught him off guard by continuing to fight. Still even as Beckett tried to twist the gun from his hand he seemed to collect himself and started to fight back. His left hand balled into a fist and Beckett was so focused on the gun that she didn't see it coming. The fist connected sharply with her left cheek and sent her flying down and to the right. Still she refused to let go of his wrist putting her full force and body weight into her grip, that was now the only thing holding her up. That was when she heard a snap and the man bellowed in pain and dropped the gun on the floor. Beckett must have broken his wrist. She dove to the floor and before he could react she picked up the gun, leaped into a standing position, and backed up a few feet pointing the gun at him.

"Don't move!" She warned harshly as she caught her breath.

The man was on the floor still pulling himself together while cradling his hurt wrist. Beckett was so focused on him she didn't notice another man in a suit jogging down the hall toward her but she did hear his voice which was full of confusion and surprise and what was more she was sure she knew the voice.

"What the hell is going on, Kate?!" The other man said letting out a gasp.

Beckett looked up and when she did it was her turn to be confused. "Will?" She asked and then glanced back down at the injured man on the floor who had by this point collected himself and was standing up. Beckett looked back at the other man to be sure she had seen what she thought she saw and a second glance confirmed that she was not crazy, just unlucky. He was one of the last people on earth she wanted to deal with at the moment. Her old boyfriend, FBI special agent Will Sorrenson.

"Kate would you mind giving Agent Peterson his gun back?" Sorrenson asked taking a couple of steps closer to her.

"She broke my wrist!" The agent complained.

"Sorry." Was all Beckett could find it in herself to say as she handed the gun back to Peterson and he grabbed it with his left hand and he returned it to it's holster.

"It's okay Agent, I will handle it from here. You go downstairs and have that taken care of." Sorrenson ordered as he waved the agent off.

"Yes sir." The agent replied and she shot Beckett an unfriendly look as he entered the elevator.

Sorrenson then turned his attention back to Beckett. "Kate I am glad you are here, maybe you can talk some sense into your writer." He said sounding exasperated.

Beckett finally found her voice and spoke forcefully. "First tell me what is going and what happened to the officers guarding Castle and what you are doing here."

"The FBI is taking over protection for you and Mister Castle. Since there had been no other attempts in the past week we thought you were safe but the events of this morning prove otherwise so we took over." He explained in a business like manor.

"That still doesn't explain what you are doing here." Beckett stated as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"I am here because the FBI wanted someone in charge of the protection detail who you two knew and trusted." He explained easily.

"And you think that is you?" Beckett asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Kate." He said and his voice softened and a hurt look passed over his face. "I know things didn't end well between us and we had our problems on the last case we worked together."

"Problems?!" Beckett interrupted with a laugh. "You cared more about one upping Castle and trying to get me back into bed then you did about finding a missing child!"

"Kate! You know that is not true." He said placing a hand on her shoulder and speaking as if he was explaining something to a child. "I'll admit I didn't want to take chances by including a playboy on the case but we solved the case in the end. I should have trusted you when you said that he could help but you need to look at the big picture. Just because we disagreed on our last case doesn't mean that I don't still care about you and I will not do everything in my power to protect you."

Beckett winced and pulled away, she would not be treated like this. "Don't talk to me like I am stupid!" She shot back. "We both know the real reason you took this job and it has nothing to do with caring about me or Castle, it has everything to do with politics. This is a high profile case and if you can take credit for saving the famous writer Richard Castle from a plot that seems to involve organized crime then your star will rise and you will be on the fast track to promotion. This is about the only thing you have ever cared about, your job! If this was not a high profile case you would not be here."

Sorrenson bristled at this and took a step back, he took a second to regain his composure before he spoke again. "I am sorry you feel that way." He said with a sigh. "Still even if you do believe that you should still listen to me since I only get those points with the FBI if you and the writer come out of this alive. It's in my best interest to protect you so you should talk some sense into that playboy."

"Maybe I will talk to him, if someone will tell me what is going on." Beckett said softening a little. There wasn't much point in bringing up the past. Yes she didn't like Sorrenson much any more but she had no reason to believe he would be petty enough to put Castle in danger and he did have a good point, he had every reason to want Castle to come out of this alive. Still she would not take anything he said at face value.

"I can't tell you that, do you have any idea how many rules I would be breaking?!" Sorrenson objected.

"Well I may know a thing or two you don't about this case so here is the deal. I will brief you on what I know and then you will brief Castle and I alone on what you know and then if I think whatever it is you want him to do is warranted I will get him to do it. No one else will know and you will get your points and maybe some new info on the case. Win Win." Beckett stated firmly.

"Okay, fine." Sorrenson said with a huff. "But you have got to talk that writer into going to an FBI safe house."

"You tell me what is going on on and I will see what I can do." Beckett replied and then they turned and made their way into Castle's hospital room. There were four FBI agents in the room as well as Martha and Alexis.

"Give us a few minutes we need to talk privately." Sorrenson said signaling to his men and a moment later they exited the room. Castle did not look happy to see Sorrenson again, in fact he seemed almost livid, but he relaxed somewhat when he saw Beckett enter a moment later.

"Would you two please leave, I need to talk to Mister Castle and Detective Beckett alone." Sorrenson explained gently and Beckett had to admit for all his other faults he did know how to keep civilians calm, at least in most cases. Martha and Alexis looked like they were going to argue but Castle saw that Beckett seemed to agree with Sorrenson so he spoke up first.

"It's okay, I'll be fine." He said looking over at his mother and daughter. After hugging him goodbye they left the room quietly.

"Okay now will you two tell me what is so important that my family had to leave?" Castle asked tersely. He had clearly had enough of Sorrenson to last a life time and didn't have any desire to extend his time with the agent one second longer then he had to.

Sorrenson seemed to feel the same way because he skipped all pleasantries and got straight down to business. "We all need to be brought up to speed on what we know about this case, maybe then you will see why I am right and you will listen for a change." Sorrenson said coldly.

"Fat chance." Castle scoffed.

"Oh will you two knock it off!" Beckett spit out, she had had enough of their bickering and wanted to get this over with as much as Castle did. Still she could put her personal feelings aside if it would bring her closer to solving the case so that is what she did. "Castle do you want to know what happened outside or not?"

"Yeah of course." Castle said looking back at Beckett and he seemed to calm down or at least decide not to let his emotions rule his actions for the moment.

"Good here is what happened." Beckett said and she began to explain everything that had happened on the street just as if she was making a report to her captain or the DA, it was the best way she knew to get through the story without getting her emotions involved. When she finally stopped everyone was quiet for a few minutes but she could tell Castle was thinking.

"So we are dealing with someone very rich and with a lot of political power. Enough power to get people out of China." Castle observed gloomily. "Still we must know something that puts whoever it is in danger or they would not have taken a shot at you." He added on a slightly brighter note as he looked up at Beckett.

"Yes but what do we know, nothing about this makes sense!" Beckett replied and she began pacing back and forth across the room to vent her frustration.

"I don't know but it must be something we don't know that we know." Castle stated thoughtfully.

"Will, how did the FBI get involved and how did they know about Roy?" Beckett asked turning to her former boyfriend. "Maybe that will give us a clue."

"That is the strange part." Sorrenson began to explain. "The day you were shot." He looked over at Castle and then continued. "The FBI got a call with an anonymous tip. We tried to trace the call but it came from a payphone in New York and all the security cameras on the street corner it was on just happened to go offline for five minutes during which the call was made."

"What did the call say exactly?" Castle asked and he was starting to get excited, for the first time since he had woken up he had something productive to do and it was a good story straight out of one of his own books.

"It said that Captain Montgomery had been killed because he was involved in a kidnapping operation that resulted in the death of an FBI agent. It then gave us the numbers of several bank accounts. Now normally we wouldn't pay this type of tip much attention but the fact that bank accounts were listed and an agent had been murdered meant that we had to at least look into it." Sorrenson explained.

Beckett turned to face Sorrenson and there was anger written all over her face. "So that is why the FBI is going so far to drag Montgomery's name through the mud. You don't really care about the case, all you care about is that one of your people was killed!"

"You're Damn right that makes this important to us and don't pretend you would react any differently if it was a member of your team who was killed!" Sorrenson shot back.

"Roy Montgomery was a good man who gave his life to save mine!" Beckett retorted, barely keeping her emotions in check.

"Sorry I know he was important to you but that doesn't change the fact that he helped kill an agent and we owe it to that man's family to find the truth. You have spent over ten years looking for the truth about your mother's murder. The family of that agent is no different then you, they went through the same hell you have been through and they deserve better then a lie!" Sorrenson said forcefully.

Beckett didn't have an answer for this so she just turned away, refusing to break down but unable to calm herself completely down either. Castle decided it was time for him to step in and change the focus.

"We can't change what has happened, we have to deal with the problem we have. Sorrenson what did the FBI do with this information?" Castle asked trying to return the room to some sort of order.

"We checked out the bank accounts and sure enough they had been opened by Montgomery and other cops he had worked with under aliases." Sorrenson explained.

Beckett had regained control of herself enough to get back to business, without saying anything she turned around and rejoined the conversation. "Montgomery said they had given all their dirty money to the person behind this so why weren't you able to follow the money to him?" She asked.

"It's changed banks and been cleaned many many times. We know where the money started and that it was dirty but half the time when we try to track it we find that records have been destroyed or lost and the people we talk to seem to either not have the full picture or are more scared of him then they are of us. We hope the money will lead us to him at some point but right now we have not found a way in. If there is just one person behind this all he has layers of people between him and the people who run the day to day of his operation and he keeps himself well protected." Sorrenson explained with an exasperated sigh.

"So there is no hope, they are going to get me at some point." Beckett observed grimly.

"No, There has to be away to get to them through Montgomery or they wouldn't have tried to kill you." Castle said, he was determined not to let her give up. "The only way this story makes sense is if they are afraid of us, we just have to figure out why."

"You know how much I hate to say this but he is right, we will get this bastard. We just have to keep you safe until we can." Sorrenson said stepping closer to Beckett and for the first time since he had shown up he seemed almost kind. "Still I will not lie to you, this is a big organization and we need to keep both of you at a safe house until we bring them down." He added a little more forcefully.

"I can't go into hiding for the rest of my life. It has taken more then ten years to get this far, who knows how long it will take to bring these people down." Castle objected.

"This is my mother's case, do you really think I can sit on the sideline Will?" Beckett added.

"Look Kate, I know this hard for you but if you touch this case now it will get thrown out of court. Do you really want these guys to get away with it? This is asking a lot I know but please step back so we can nail these guys and all the people who died didn't do it for nothing." Sorrenson was almost pleading with her. He then turned to Castle. "As for how long this will take, we have good leads and we have some idea of what we are looking for, so unless you have a way to close this case quicker a safe house is the best that we can do for you."

"Okay" Castle said and he paused to think for a minute. "Do you have any idea who called in the tip?" He asked a moment later.

"We think it must be some member of the organization who grew a conscience. It wouldn't be the first time this sort of thing has happened and it would explain how they know so much. Still that isn't a workable lead at the moment." Sorrenson said with a shake of his head.

"That doesn't explain the bomb being moved or Chang being knocked out." Castle said thoughtfully. "Those things were done with style and with the intent of sending a message. I think we are dealing with some third party who has a grudge."

"I think maybe you have been reading too many of your own books, things like that don't happen in real life." Sorrenson scoffed.

"No, Castle's right. It's the only thing that makes sense." Beckett pointed out.

"Okay so even if that is true that doesn't help us all that much. I mean this guy has broken laws to help us so he is not about to come out of the shadows and answer our questions. It's still not a lead." Sorrenson replied.

"Maybe he can't come out directly and give us a lead but maybe he left something this last time that can help us. Like when he gave the FBI the bank accounts." Castle said rubbing his chin.

"The only thing he left for us was Chang and I don't think he will be of much help." Sorrenson said doubtfully.

"Wait." Beckett said with a snap of her fingers and she turned to face Castle. "Chang said that there was a go between for whoever is behind this and the Tongs."

"That go between would have to know who he was working for in order to offer things like money and getting people out of China." Castle added completing the thought and for the first time in a long time Beckett felt like a complete person, she was building theories with her partner once again. Yes they were in big trouble but they now had a chance because they were back in sync. As if to confirm this they both seemed to have the exact same thought and blurted it out at the exact same time.

"We need to talk to the Tongs!" They said.

**Sorry this took so long but I am not good with action scenes so that bit took me a whole day to write. Also sorry that this chapter was nothing but plot exposition, it was needed to move the story forward but it made for a boring chapter. Really sorry about that. I tired to add Sorrenson in to make it at least a little interesting but I don't think it worked. Over all I am not very happy with this chapter but it was the best I could do.**

**Any way thanks for sticking with this story and I promise the next chapter will be more interesting.**

**Once again many thanks to Caskettfan 5 for Beta help with this chapter.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

FBI special agent Will Sorrenson had a horrible sinking feeling. When he had first taken this assignment and learned that Richard Castle was involved the one consolation had been that Kate Beckett would also be there and he had been sure that she would be able to counter act the writer's more insane ideas, after all he had been following her around like a lost puppy the last time he had seen them together. Instead now it seemed like that at some point in the past year and a half some of the writer had rubbed off onto the normally sensible Kate and they both seemed determined to get involved in the case in the most dangerous way possible and he would somehow have to keep them safe despite this. At that moment he felt like the universe it's self was out to get him, his life had taken a very wrong turn.

"Talking to the Tongs is a terrible idea." Sorrenson objected, it wasn't much but it was all he had in his current shocked state of mind.

"Why, it's a solid lead." Castle pointed out as he looked up a Sorrenson for the first time since Beckett had entered the room.

"Well how about we start with the fact that the Tongs will never turn on someone they do business with." Sorrenson stated, taking a couple of steps closer to the bed.

Beckett turned to face Sorrenson and said. "It can't hurt to ask a few questions."

"Yeah and they don't have to know they are talking to the police or the FBI, one of us could go undercover." Castle added a little too excitedly for Sorrenson's taste. Undercover work was dangerous and shouldn't be viewed as fun or exciting.

"How about the fact that you are in a hospital bed, you are not going undercover!" Sorrenson replied with disbelief written all over his face.

"Come on when you talked to the doctors about moving me they said all they have to do is get these tubes out of me and get me fitted for a wheelchair and I am good to go." Castle protested.

"Yeah to an FBI safe house where you will be under expert medical care, not on an undercover mission. Kate, help me out here." Sorrenson interrupted and he turned to his former girlfriend for support.

"He's right Castle." Beckett said turning to face the writer and Sorrenson let out a sigh of relief that didn't last long. "If anyone is going undercover it's me."

"No, you are not putting yourself in any more danger over this!" Castle stated firmly.

"You can't even get out of bed!" Beckett pointed out.

"This whole thing is my fault, and you are not getting hurt because of it. It's my mess and I will clean it up!" Castle yelled out and a stunned silence fell over the room.

Beckett turned to Sorrenson and spoke quietly to him. "Could you give us a moment?" She asked and Sorrenson nodded that he understood and he turned and walked out of the room. Once he was gone Kate returned her attention to the man in the hospital bed. "Okay explain to me how any of this is your fault." Beckett demanded sharply.

Castle's face became grave and when he spoke it was almost with the voice of a child confessing something bad he had done. "If I hadn't dug into your mother's case none of this would have happened and you wouldn't be in any danger. You were right, I did do it for me and not for you. I can't let you die for something that I did."

Beckett was silent for a moment and then she spoke quietly, not looking Castle in the eyes. "Is that why you took the bullet, you have some kind of death wish?"

"I don't want to die but I know how stories work and I can't see this one ending without someone dead and it can't be you." Castle said coldly and Beckett was shocked by the lack of emotion in his voice, it was like he was talking about the weather. She had already seen him die once in real life and so many more times when she closed her eyes, she couldn't watch it happen again.

Beckett took Castle's head in her hands and forced him to look her in the eyes and when she spoke it was with a passion that was rarely seen the in detective. "This is not one of your books Castle, you don't get to write the ending. You don't get to kill yourself because of me."

"You don't understand it's my fault, you said so yourself." Castle said through clenched teeth. "I have to take responsibility for my actions, you taught me that."

At this Beckett stood up and paced away from the bed, she ran her hand through her hair in frustration and then turned around to face Castle. "Is that the only reason you have stuck around and why you said you loved me, guilt?" She asked, her voice almost choked out by emotion.

"What, how can you even ask me that?!" Castle replied shocked.

"You did just say you are going to throw your life away because of guilt, maybe you feel responsible for my being alone to so saying that you love me is just you doing your duty in your mind." Beckett said as she turned away from the bed and then a moment later she turned back and added angrily. "Well I have got news for you Richard Castle, I don't need that kind of love!"

"How could you think I don't love you?!" Castle demanded and he was battling between sorrow and rage. "You are the most amazing person I have ever met and I am not throwing my life away because I can't live without you. I put you in danger and I have to keep you safe. If you die then I will die a little piece at a time any way, so I have to do this. The question is did you only say you love me because you felt guilty about my getting shot?"

Beckett's jaw hit the floor when he said this, she thought they had resolved this issue but clearly it was still hanging over their heads. She didn't know how to argue emotions so she went with what she was good with, facts. "If I didn't love you then I could have filed a harassment complaint with my union rep a long time ago and gotten rid of you." Castle didn't look like he was completely sold on this. "You offered to walk away more then a year ago, if I didn't love you why didn't I take you up on that?" Still not sold so Beckett closed in for the kill and moved to within two paces of Castle and looked down at him as she spoke. "I may have a lot of problems that I still have to work through and I may not have seen it at first but I do know that I love you, Richard Castle." This seemed to do the trick and he calmed down. Beckett then put her hand on Castle's and added. "Yes you may have reopened this case but we have gone down this path together every step of the way and that is how we will finish it, together and we will both come out of this alive."

"I wish I could be as sure of that as you are." Castle said with sadness in his eyes.

"Look at how many times we have beaten the odds already, pulling out all those wires on the dirty bomb should not have worked but it did. We will get through this." Beckett said looking down at Castle.

"I do seem to be the hero who can't be beat." Castle said with a cocky smile.

"Oh please." Beckett said rolling her eyes.

"Hey you are the one that said I always beat the odds." Castle pointed out.

"I said we always beat the odds, you can't even win a bar fight without me." Beckett with a small smile.

"Technically I was not in that fight and he caught me by surprise!" Castle replied defensively.

"I still can't believe you talked me into signing a paper to get that guy into locksmithing school." She said with a sigh.

"Hey I can read people." Castle said and Beckett was about to object when he added. "He hasn't gotten into any trouble yet has he?"

This seemed to quiet Beckett but only for a second before she sat down on the bed and leaned in to within an inch of his face. "If you are so good at reading people then how come you didn't know I loved you?" She asked.

"Well it can be hard to tell real love from sexual attraction, and all the woman are attracted to me." Castle explained.

"Oh please." Beckett said as she rolled her eyes and pulled back from him.

"Admit it detective, you were flirting with me from the moment we met. You knew questioning me was a dead end, you just wanted to meet and maybe later debrief me."

"You are the one who wanted me to spank him."

"The offer still stands."

"For now I think we will just have to settle for this, stud." Beckett said and she leaned in for a kiss. It was more passionate then anything they had shared up to that point and it may had gone farther if it were not for a knock on the room's door frame. They both pulled away and tried to compose themselves and turned their attention to the door. It was Will Sorrenson who was knocking and he was leaning into the room.

"Is it safe to come in?" He asked.

"It is now." Castle said sounding very annoyed.

"Good Because I just got a call from my boss, it seems the little incident in the hall has worked it's way up the FBI chain of command and I have to ask you some questions, Kate." Sorrenson said as he stepped into the room and turned his attention to Beckett.

"What do you have to ask me?" Beckett asked puzzled.

"Did Agent Peterson identify himself as a federal agent before you attacked him?" Sorresnson asked carefully.

"Oh." was all Beckett said at first, she had forgotten in all the excitement that she had beat up an agent of the FBI. "No he didn't." She then added calmly. "I saw that the two officers who were guarding Castle were gone and there was a man there and he went for his gun without saying anything and I was afraid for both my safety and Castle's so I attacked him before he could get to his gun."

"Okay, good." Sorrenson said with a sigh of relief. "I just got a call and this means that he screwed up so I don't have to arrest you."

"Wait you attacked an FBI agent?' Castle said in surprise.

"She broke his wrist." Sorrenson added and Beckett flinched at this. Yeah the guy had screwed up but just like her he was most likely on edge due to the bombing and he was a young kid so who could blame him for making a tiny screw up and he had been at least trying to protect Castle. Still this news didn't seem to dampen Castle's spirits at all.

"That's my girl." He said proudly and then Beckett reached over and twisted his right ear.

"Never call me your girl again." She said glaring at him.

"Should I call you my woman instead, is that more PC these days?" Beckett twisted harder. "Okay, okay... Apples, Apples, Apples. You are not my girl or my woman." Castle cried out and Beckett released his ear.

"Suddenly I am glad we broke up." Sorrenson said to no one in particular, this earned him a death glare from Beckett.

"Hey I only have to get rough with this guy because he is such a jackass." Beckett said looking over at her former boyfriend and she was glad that he seemed to have moved on, the last thing she wanted to deal with in the middle of all her other problems was Sorrenson and Castle fighting over her after she had already made her choice clear, she was not a thing to be owned and fought over.

"Hey I thought we agreed I was a wise ass, not a jack ass!" Castle objected.

"I am thinking you are wise ass on your mother's side and Jackass on your father's." Castle said playfully turning her attention back to Castle.

"I dare you to prove it." Castle said.

"Castle we know it is fifty fifty and are you really going to call your own mother a Jackass." Beckett pointed out.

"Not when I can't run away from her." Castle responded, this brought the room down a little and everyone got quiet after Castle suddenly reminded everyone of how badly he had been hurt.

"Speaking of, you still have to decide what you are going to do." Sorrenson said looking at Castle and Beckett as he returned to the matter at hand.

"Well I still don't like going into hiding for who knows how long." Castle said firmly.

"He has a point, we will not be safe until whoever is behind this is taken down and we may have a good lead on that. Hiding just doesn't sound like the right move. At some point he will find us, we have to take him down before he gets us." Beckett agreed.

"Look you two are in no shape to handle this case." Sorrenson said with a sigh.

"This is my mother's case and they are after me, how can you expect me to sit back and watch as other people put their lives in danger for me?" Beckett asked with pain showing on her face.

Sorrenson didn't even pause, Kate had handed him the trump card and he played it. "You make a good point these people are ruthless and will keep coming for you." This earned him a nod of agreement from Beckett so then he went in for the kill. "They were willing to blow up a whole hospital just to get the two of you. Hundreds of people including your own family could have been killed." Sorrenson turned his attention to Castle for this last part before returning it to Kate for the next. "What if we are not so lucky next time, do you really want hundreds of people to die with you? Kate, could you really live with yourself if some little girl was left without a father or mother because they got caught in the crossfire?"

This seemed to do the trick as both of the other people in the room went quiet and looked away from Sorrenson. He thought he saw a single tear make it's way down Beckett's cheek and suddenly he felt like an ass. What was he thinking bringing her mother into this?! He was the jackass in the room now and he didn't like the feeling. "Kate, I'm sorry." He said earnestly.

Beckett didn't respond to him instead she turned to Castle and sniffed. "He's right, if we stay out in public someone else will get hurt." She said with a sniff.

"I don't like running when we have a lead, running from perps is not how we have ever done things before. We win these battles head on and you have done nothing wrong and shouldn't have to run." Castle replied sternly.

"How about this." Sorrenson said jumping in. "The FBI will get a description of this go between from Chang and we will work with the NYPD to find him and if we can't then we will send someone both of us trust undercover, we will not let the lead go cold."

"I still don't like handing this case over to someone else." Castle said with a grumble.

"Please, Castle for me?" Beckett pleaded with him softly and he looked up at her and then she added. "You, Martha, Alexis, and my father are closer to me then anyone else in the world, I can't lose any of you."

"Okay." Castle said with a sigh, he didn't like running but he liked the idea of causing Beckett pain even less. All that was keeping him going at the moment was his need to take care of her and if keeping himself safe was the best way to do that he would do it no mater how much he disliked the idea of hiding.

"Thank you so much." Beckett said and she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek not even caring at that moment if Sorrenson was watching.

"On one condition." Castle said as he pushed Beckett off of him. "You have to go into protection too, I can't lose you either." He added firmly.

"Okay." Beckett said with a sniff.

"Okay?!" Castle said shocked.

"Yes, okay. How many times do I have to say it?" Beckett asked becoming annoyed.

"Thank you so much." Castle said gratefully. Then he added as if he had just thought of it. "Hey what about your father, if you go off the grid these people could use him to lure you out."

Beckett suddenly felt ashamed of herself, she should have thought of that sooner, she should have checked in right after the bomb went off. The trouble was she was not sure what she would say to him, she had hurt him deeply and she didn't know how to make it right. This was all too much too fast, her emotions were like a storm raging at sea. Still it could not be avoided and she would just have to lower her sails and ride out the storm.

Sorrenson stepped up beside the bed and spoke when he could tell Kate couldn't think of anything to say. "Don't worry Kate, we will send some men to pick him up as well as to grab anything you think you will need from your apartment. I don't think it is safe for either of you to go to your homes at the moment." Sorrenson said in a comforting tone.

"Thanks Will." Beckett said looking up at him. "But if you are going by my father's place there should be a suitcase there packed and ready to go so you don't need to go to my apartment."

"Okay." Sorrenson said quietly and then he switched to his FBI special agent mode. "I was going to send you two to separate safe houses but I take it now that you will all want to go to the same place at the end of the day when Mister Castle is ready to be moved."

"Yes, please." Castle and Beckett said in unison.

"Okay I am going out to make a few calls to arrange for Kate's father to be brought in and for you all five of you to stay in the same place." Sorrenson said to both of them and then he turned to Castle. "I'll send your family in. You should make a list of everything you will need for a long stay away from everything as well as where the items can be found in your home." He instructed and Castle nodded that he understood.

"So we are really doing this?" Castle said with disbelief.

"It's the right thing to do." Beckett said firmly.

"Yeah I know." Castle said with a sigh. "It's just we could be gone for months." The he added more playfully. "Do you think you can put up with me for a few months, detective?"

"Of all the times for me not to have a gun!" Beckett said as she playfully face palmed.

"I know." Castle said looking up up at her with mock understanding. "Still once the doctors give me the okay I promise I will make it up to you."

"You are pretty sure of yourself aren't you Mister Castle." Beckett said flirting with him while reaching down and lightly touching his crotch."

Before Castle could come up with a come back they were interrupted. "Ewe, get a room you two." Alexis said as she entered the room.

"I have a room!" Castle objected. Looking up at his daughter and mother who were now walking over to him.

"I mean a room I am not in." Alexis added. "If this is the sort of thing I am going to see on a regular basis you are going to have to pay for the therapy." This caused Beckett to blush bright red and turn away from the teenage girl for a moment, she had not felt like this since she was a teenager and her father had caught her in a car with a boy.

"Okay Okay, I got it. No more PDA." Castle said relenting and then he looked up at his daughter gravely. "There is something I need to talk to you both about." He said looking at his daughter and mother and he explained what was going on and why they would have to leave. Martha was upset that she would have to leave the play she had just signed on for and her acting school but once Castle and Beckett explained about the bomb she seemed to resign herself to it. She wasn't happy but at least she seemed to be directing her anger at the people who were after Beckett and her son and not him. Alexis was a little easier, she was on summer break so she decided to look on the bright side that she was not missing any school and there was a chance she would be back in the city just in time for her final year of high school. She was not happy about leaving her friends for the summer but if it meant keeping her father safe she could live with it.

For the next half hour they all worked on the list of things they would need for the trip. Castle lifted everyone's spirits by making jokes and saying how cool it would all be because it was just like they were in a mob movie. This made Beckett smile. Moments like this were one of the biggest reasons she loved them and why they worked so well together. While she would always see the cloud that was blowing in and brace for the storm he would focus on the fact that the rest of the sky was blue. Either outlook could get you killed if it was all you focused on but together they were complete and she valued the fact that he could make people smile even in a dark hour.

She was just thinking these thoughts when she saw Will in the doorway signaling to her silently. He was shaken and his face was white as a sheet. She didn't like this, she had to know what was going on. On shaky legs she forced herself up and walked into the hall where Castle and his family could not see her.

Sorrenson spoke before she could and he spoke quickly. "Before I say anything else I promise you that we will leave no stone unturned, we will have our best people on this, we will get him back." Sorrenson tried to assure her but all this did was cause Beckett to panic. She had a pretty good idea of what had happened but she needed to hear the words for herself.

"The men that I sent over to your father's place couldn't find him. He was not home and the place was trashed as if there was a struggle or someone was looking for something." Sorrenson explained gently but firmly while reaching out a hand to comfort Beckett but she was too shocked to speak and just pulled away.

Beckett then slumped against the wall, she didn't cry because she was too shocked. She couldn't even think and she felt her whole body go cold. These bastards had taken her mother from her and now they had taken her father and what made it worse the last thing she had said to him was that he didn't love her and she didn't want him in her life. Beckett couldn't find it in herself to cry and a moment later she felt so cold that the freezer she had once almost died in seemed like a warm place. She was completely frozen and unable to think. Without even thinking about it she pushed herself to her feet and began walking, when Will tried to stand in her way she shoved him out of her way without even looking at him. Moving almost like a robot, not even paying attention to the world around her she headed for the elevator. She had to find her father, that was the only thought in her mind at that moment.

**Okay I know I am sounding like a broken record at this point but sorry for the delay. As I said in the notes for my last chapter I am not good at writing action scene so before I got to the part of the story that will have a lot of action in it I decided to read some Jack Reacher books to try and get myself into the right head space. Lee Child does a great job with action scenes. The trouble is that I got so caught up in the book I spent every free second I had reading them when I should have been writing. I am really sorry about that, thanks for putting up with all these delays and again the feedback for the last chapter blew me away.**

**Thanks to everyone who follows, favorite, or reviews this story and thanks again to everyone who cares enough to PM me. You guys are why I write.**

**Now for some good news from this time forward there should not be any more delays, you should get a new chapter every day except for Sundays and Wednessdays.**

**Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this.**

**Oh and as you may be able to tell I really liked Norman Jessup and like to think Castle wore Beckett down in the end and he got a second chance.**

**Oh and another big thank you goes out to Caskettfan5 for helping me proof read and edit this chapter, you are the best.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Kate Beckett got to within one pace of the elevator when she felt a heavy hand grab onto her left arm, she tried to fight against it but the hand would not let her go and pulled her back. The hand left her arm but it and another hand then grabbed hold of her shoulders and shoved her again the hallway wall hard. She tried to break free but the owner of the hand stood in front of her blocking her way, he was bigger and stronger then her and he used all of his body weight to pin her against the wall. The hands of course belonged to Will Sorrenson.

"Will, Let me go!" Beckett angrily demanded as she struggled against Sorrenson's grasp on her body as she felt terror and rage wash over her like a torrential downpour.

"Not until you stop panicking and think." Will stated firmly refusing to raise his own voice.

"He's my father and I can't let anything happen to him!" Beckett yelled as she tried to fight her way clear but Sorrenson just shoved her back against the wall.

"Exactly, and they know that." Sorrenson said raising his voice a little this time. "What if the sniper is camped out across the street, or they have planted another bomb and are just waiting for you to show up?!"

"I don't care it's my fault that he is in danger and you can't keep me here." Beckett insisted.

"You really will not change your mind?" Will asked gently but firmly as he looked into her eyes.

"No, I will go there and I will find him even if it kills me." Beckett stated with determination all over her face.

Sorrenson then released her with a sad sigh and Beckett thought he was letting her go so she put her guard down and took a step forward. She was surprised when Sorrenson grabbed her again and spun her around quickly pushing her front against the wall. His full body weight was now against her back and the next thing she felt were her hands being pulled behind her back and a pair of metal handcuffs being locked around her wrists.

"Will, what the hell are you doing?!" Beckett spat out and now her face was turning bright red.

"I hate to do this but you have left me no choice." Sorrenson explained firmly. "Kathrine Beckett, you are under arrest for assaulting a federal officer."

"We cleared that up, you can't arrest me for that!" Beckett insisted.

"The charges have not officially been dropped yet so I can hold you for seventy-two hours." Sorrenson explained and his voice turned cold, betraying no emotion.

"You can't do this to me!" Beckett yelled trying to break free of the handcuffs but of course if she had been thinking she would have known it was no use, but she wasn't thinking she was running on emotion and Will knew what every trained law enforcement officer does, that going into danger without thinking is as good as putting a pistol to your head and pulling the trigger. He was not about to let Beckett go, even if it did get him into trouble later. He wasn't about to let her run to her own death, so he continued to hold her firm against the wall and wait for her to calm down and for her training to kick in.

That was when they were interrupted by a small shocked voice. "What is going on?" Sorrenson looked over his left shoulder and saw that the voice belonged to a very worried looking young woman, it was Castle's daughter Alexis. Seeing her caused Sorrenson to release his hold on Beckett and take a step back, this allowed Beckett to turn around and face the redhead.

"Special Agent Sorrenson, why do you have Kate in handcuffs?" Alexis asked, clearly confused.

"Detective Beckett is insisting on running headlong into a trap, so I had no choice but to arrest her for her own safety." Sorrenson explained calmly.

"Kate I thought you said you were done putting yourself in danger. You promised you would be here for me, how can you be here for me if you get yourself killed?" Alexis asked looking up at the detective with sad hurt eyes.

At any other time this display would have hit it's mark and Beckett would have broken down but at that moment she only knew one thing and that was her father had been taken because of her and the last thing she had said to him had been full of hate and she had to make both of these things right. "You don't understand they have my father, he is in danger. I have to do something, you have no idea what that is like." Beckett pleaded looking down at the girl.

"I have no idea?!" Alexis shot back and for the first time in about a week Beckett saw the girl angry, and she was about to find out that what was said about the temper of redheads was true, at least in the case of Alexis Castle. "My dad has been in constant danger for the past three years!" She raged taking a step closer to the detective. "I still have no idea what was so bad that he had to send me out of the city earlier this year. Every single day I wake up wondering if it is the last time I will ever see him. I saw him get shot and die right in front of my eyes!" She then took two more paces forward so she was standing directly in front of Beckett, Beckett looked like she was about to say something but Alexis wouldn't let her. "If you could stop being selfish for thirty seconds you would see that I may know how you feel better then you do. My dad is in constant danger, this is the first time yours has been in any danger and you have other family besides him. Stop acting like your pain in is the only thing in the world that matters!" Alexis then shocked both Sorrenson and Beckett by reaching up with her right hand and slapping Beckett across the face, hard enough that the sound echoed through the hall and her hand left a bright red mark where it had connected with the detective's face. Alexis then turned and began walking away slowly and then with out looking back said in a small broken voice. "Do what you like Detective Beckett but please don't come back here again. My father and I can't handle how selfish you are on top of everything else we have to deal with." Then she walked into her father's room leaving a very conflicted Kate Beckett standing in the hall.

"Will what do I do?" Beckett asked heartbroken but refusing to cry. "I can't lose my father but I can't lose them either, they are my family now." Beckett said turning to face the man standing beside her.

"Do what you tell every other family member who has a loved one kidnapped to do." Sorrenson said in a comforting tone of voice. "Let us handle it."

"But how do we know you will even be able to find him?" Beckett asked desperately.

"They took him for a reason, you know that." Sorrenson said laying out the fact calmly so an emotional Beckett could clearly examine them for the first time. "They will have to contact you and make demands and that will give us our best shot. If I have to divert men to following and protecting you then it will just increase the chances that something bad will happen to your father. Do you understand?" Beckett thought about this for a second and then with a sad broken look in her eyes she nodded that she understood. "Okay, if I uncuff you do you promise not to run away?" Sorrenson asked a moment later.

"Yes." Beckett answered brokenly while looking at her own feet.

"Alright." Sorrenson said and he reached behind Beckett and uncuffed her wrists, she then pulled her arms in front of her and began rubbing her raw wrists with her hands. "At a time like this you need the support of people who love you so you should go in there and join them." Sorrenson said motioning to Castle's room down the hall. "I'll let you know the moment we find anything."

"Okay." Was all Beckett could say and she said it so softly that if Sorrenson had not been standing right beside her he would not have been able to hear her, then she slowly and sadly made her way down the hall.

Beckett hadn't even stepped all the way into the room when Martha rushed over and pulled her into a hug while muttering, I'm sorry. Beckett didn't resist or even really react as the older woman led her over to the recliner beside Castle's bed and sat her down in it. She released the heartbroken detective from the hug and instead knelt down on the floor beside the chair and took Beckett's right hand in one of her own and began stroking it in a comforting manner with her other hand. Beckett was unable to react to this and she just looked dead ahead, she had no idea what to do or how to react.

A few moments later Alexis Castle came rushing over to her. The girl didn't say sorry for anything she had said or done but she did hug the older woman, she held on tight and refused to let go until at last with her free arm Beckett reached out and silently returned the hug.

"I wish there was something I could do." Was all Castle said sadly. Beckett almost cried at this but she didn't, she wanted to keep her head clear. For all she knew she would be getting a call at any moment. They sat there for about ten minutes without talking, after all what was there to say? Then Will entered the room.

"I just thought you should know the lab techs are at your father's place and have started working the scene." He reported gently.

"I should be there." Was all Beckett said and this caused Alexis to pull back from her and Sorrenson to enter the room.

"Kate, we have been over this. You will not help your father by getting yourself killed, and he wouldn't want that." Sorrenson said firmly.

"I understand that." Beckett said a moment later looking around the room from one person to the other. "But I know my father better then anyone and I will know if anything is out of place or if there is a clue. I may spot something that the lab techs miss, but you are right I can't go there." She then looked down at the floor and seemed to resign herself to her fate. Alexis walked over and hugged her again and for the first time she felt like she really understood the woman, she could not imagine how conflicted she must be feeling at that moment, then she had an idea.

"Maybe there is a way for you to see your father's apartment without going there." Alexis said and everyone in the room including Beckett for the first time looked at the teenager. "Special Agent Sorrenson see if anyone at the scene has a video smartphone with the Skype app on it." She said looking at Sorrenson.

"Pumpkin that's brilliant! We can log on and talk to the team at the apartment in real time from my laptop!" Castle said as a proud smile broke across his face.

"Can you do that?" Beckett asked hopefully looking up at Sorrenson.

"I'll make a call." Sorrenson said and quickly exited the room and as Castle quickly opened his laptop and suddenly Beckett's depression was replaced with a faint glimmer of hope.

A few moments later Sorrenson reentered the room while hanging up his phone and he handed Castle a piece of paper with some writing on it. "Agent Becker has the Skype app on her phone turned on, here is how you get to the video." He explained quickly.

Beckett leaned over and focused all her attention on the screen of Castle's laptop as he followed the instructions and logged on. A moment later an image of Jim Beckett's living room came into to voice.

"Are you logged on?" An unseen gentle female voice said through the laptop's speakers.

"We are here." Castle replied.

"Okay what would you like to see first?" Becker asked.

"Show me the front door." Beckett said leaning over a little more for a better look. A few moments later there was a shaky slow pan across the entrance to the apartment.

"As you can see the door was not forced and it was unlocked when we entered. Nothing around the door seems to have been touched, including a suitcase that is sitting beside the door." Becker reported.

"Have any of the windows been forced?" Beckett asked, she was doing her best to remain in detective mode. If she let her emotions take hold there was a chance she would miss a vital clue.

"No, they are all closed and locked from the inside." Becker replied.

"So he let whoever it was in." Beckett observed.

"That could mean it was someone he knew." Castle piped in grimly. Beckett didn't respond to this, she knew it was a logical conclusion but she didn't want to think that any of her father's friends could be a plant sent in by the "Dragon".

"Okay show me the living room." Beckett instructed.

The camera then panned over the room and Castle got a puzzled look on his face.

"If there was a fight it must have been over quickly." Becker said. " None of the furniture seems to have been moved or knocked over and while there are a lot of things on the floor they are all broken photos or knick knacks."

"This doesn't make sense, how did only that stuff get moved in a fight?" Beckett asked more to herself then to Becker.

"No idea, maybe they were searching for something." Becker replied.

"Yeah but if they were searching for something it would have been something I had left there so why didn't they touch the suitcase that has my name on it?" Beckett asked again becoming more puzzled.

"Who knows." Was all Becker could say and she continued to pan the phone's camera across the room.

Castle then spoke up. "Beckett did you have some sort of fight with your dad when you saw him today?" Castle asked carefully.

"Why would you ask that?" Beckett asked suddenly feeling very exposed and guilty.

"You did have a fight with him." Castle observed, reading Beckett like a book.

"So what if I did, what does that have to do with this?" Beckett said defensively.

"How did it end?" Castle asked, and bracing himself for a slap across the face. Instead Beckett's reply was quiet and guilty.

"I told him I didn't want him in my life." Beckett replied weakly feeling nothing but shame as she made the confession.

"Why would you do that, dear?" Martha asked clearly shocked into joining the conversation.

"He told me about how he had gone to you behind my back so I told him to get out of my life and stay out." Beckett said looking over at Castle with tears filling her eyes but she still refused to cry then she added. "I still don't understand what this has to do with him being kidnapped."

"Simple I don't think he has been kidnapped." Castle said drawing shocked looks from everyone in the room. "This room doesn't look like it has been searched or there was a fight in it. It looks like my office did the nights I figured out both of my marriages were over. This is the room of a heart broken man who is angry at himself and the world and is smashing everything that reminds him of his pain." Castle explained quickly, Beckett looked at him shocked so he continued. "Look all the photos are of either you or your mother and all the knick knacks are the sorts of things that a woman would buy not a man so they must be your mother's old things."

"You are right how could I not have spotted it?!" Beckett asked and her voice was full of as much shock as fear and guilt. She then looked up at Sorrenson. "Is there an APB out on my father?" She asked.

"Of course." Sorrenson replied.

"Well have the local PD and your own people focus on the blocks around my father's building." She instructed as if she was somehow in charge but Sorrenson didn't argue with her, instead he just pulled out his cellphone and started to dial.

"Also have them check all the nearby bars." Castle added and this earned him an angry look from Beckett.

"My father isn't that kind of man any more, he is past that. You have no idea what he went through, how dare you judge him!" She fired at Castle venting all the anger and guilt she felt towards herself at Castle.

Castle knew better then to get into a fight with Beckett, if he was right she had a hard enough time ahead of her. He knew she would blame herself for what had happened so he just calmly explained. "If Alexis had said she never wanted to see me again that is where I would be."

"I would never do that." Alexis piped in without thinking.

"Really, I am pretty sure I could push you to that if I wanted to. What if I rode another police horse naked." Castle said looking up at his daughter.

"I would never kick you out as long as you have money." Alexis replied trying to lighten the mood.

"Just for that I am leaving all my money to charity, check." Castle said.

"Well then I guess I will just have to shack up with the first rich guy I find. I think that is checkmate." Alexis said with a smirk.

"Okay you win, you get all my money." Castle said with a sigh.

"What am I, chopped liver?" Martha asked throwing her hands in the air.

"I think you have gotten enough of my money over the years." Castle said looking over at his mother.

Throughout this whole exchange Beckett was silent, as she looked down at her hands. She wanted to believe her father was a better man than Castle had given him credit for but in her head she knew that there was always a chance of a relapse and no one was ever truly free of addiction. Still if he was drunk she had no idea what he could have been thinking, she accused him of caring more about booze then he did about her so he decided to prove her point, what kind of person thought that way? The answer came back, an addict. She didn't want to think about her father as an addict, just as someone who had had trouble coping with her mother's death like her.

Then again wasn't she an addict? Didn't she throw herself into work and shut herself down to everyone after her mother's murder. Was there really much difference between turning to the bottle and turning to work, still she thought he had gotten better and the fact that he had gotten better had given her hope that she could too, was it really just a lost cause? No, she had to think positively. For all she knew he was just on a long walk and Will would enter the room at any minute with good news. That was the one thing she was hoping for most in the world at that moment. Still if she had turned him back to the bottle she had no idea how she would ever forgive herself, and if she couldn't forgive herself how could she forgive him?

A Minute latter Will Sorrenson entered the room, he was placing his cellphone in his pocket and he looked like his mood had brightened. "Good news, Kate." He said walking over to her. "Local PD picked up your father in a bar just down the street from his building. They say he is pretty drunk but otherwise he is okay and they are bringing him here."

That did it for the first time since she had heard her father was missing Kate Beckett began to cry. She was glad he was okay and the worst had not happened but looking at it another way the worst had happened. She had tossed her father back into the jaws of the monster that had nearly devoured his body and soul once before. How would she live with herself and how would she face him for all the months they would have to spend together in hiding? Would he even want to see her again, could she bear to see him drunk again? All these questions raced through her mind as she let the tears fall and at that moment she felt like the worst daughter in the world.

**Okay the response the last chapter was just amazing I can't believe how many reviews and Pms I got and they were all hugely helpful. Everyone who has reviewed this story,PMed me,followed, or favorited it has my deepest thanks.**

**I would like to single out fbobs, not only did he send me Pms with some very useful information in them but he pointed me in the direction of two very helpful books I had never heard of before. Thanks to his feedback I am becoming a better writer.**

**Again thanks to everyone who reads and reviews this story and I hope you like this latest chapter.**

**Thanks for proof reading this, Caskettfan 5!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Kate Beckett was crying and for the first time since he woke up Richard Castle was feeling truly limited and disabled. Up until that point he had felt like he was just having a normal extended stay at the hospital, it didn't really feel like his life had been completely changed and he was not the man he used to be. He had understood when the doctors told him there was a chance he would never walk again but he hadn't really felt like that was the case. People don't move around much in the hospital any way so he still felt like he was just in the hospital and his life would be back to normal soon. Now with Beckett crying and the only thing he could do to comfort her being reaching out with his right hand and rubbing her shoulder he felt disabled for the first time. He couldn't even help the people he loved in their time of need, what good was he? He was useless, he was a burden to them. Still he had to keep up a brave face, if his daughter saw how he felt it would only make things harder for her and she had it bad enough. Then there was Beckett. If she even got a hint of how he felt she would feel guilty, he knew that was the kind of person she was, so he couldn't let anyone know how he really felt he just had to suck it up and act like his normal happy self. Besides if he acted happy long enough wouldn't he be happy at some point? One thing was for sure getting depressed wouldn't help anyone so he just wouldn't do it.

All Castle could do was rub Beckett's shoulder and mutter "It will be okay.", He looked up a moment later to see his mother and daughter quietly making their exit from the room, they seemed to sense that what Beckett needed most at that moment was privacy. Castle gave them a sad smile letting them know he was grateful for their thoughtfulness and then he returned his attention to Beckett.

"Could you sit up here on the bed?" Castle asked gently and Beckett thought she detected an undercurrent of shame in his tone of voice but she was too far gone in her own pain to think about it at that moment.

"Why?" Beckett asked looking up at him, her eyes red and puffy from crying.

"Because I think you could use a hug and I can't reach you." Castle's words were soft and full of compassion but his face was pained, how was he supposed to be there for Beckett when he couldn't even move to hug her?

Beckett didn't say a word she simply sat up on the bed and placed her head on Castle's shoulder as he reached out and grabbed her in a hug. He rubbed her back slowly and she just sat there for about five minutes with him holding her, he wanted so badly to apologize for the fact that he couldn't come to her, for not being there when she got the news that her father was missing but that would make this about him and it wasn't about him so instead he kept his mouth shut.

Finally Beckett pulled herself off of Castle's shoulder and looked up at him. "Thank you, I feel better." She said with a sniff.

"You have nothing to thank me for, I'm sorry you have to go through this." He said looking down at her as he reached over and wiped a tear from her cheek.

"I don't know how I am going to get through this." Beckett admitted brokenly, she never admitted to not being able to handle things this told Castle that it was bad but he wasn't sure what he could say to make it better so he just said the first thing that popped into his head.

"You did it before, you can do it again." Castle said trying to reassure the detective who sat on his hospital bed looking up at him with eyes that seemed so lost.

"I don't think I can do it this time. I am the one who pushed him back to it and I am so angry with him right now that I don't think I can help him and I am not sure he will even want my help." Beckett said and the lost look in her eyes was slowly giving way to one of panic.

Castle took a breath before he spoke and when he did he looked Beckett in the eyes so she could make no mistake about how serious he was. "As a father let me tell you that while he may have made a big mistake he can get over it. It's just one relapse and if it comes down to a choice between his addiction and his daughter, I know he will choose you."

"That may be how it works in books Castle but real life is seldom that clean and tidy." Beckett said with a sigh and Castle tried to interrupt her but she didn't let him. "When you have an addiction that is all that matters to you, I have seen fathers prostitute their preteen daughters for the money they need to fuel whatever addiction they have and I am sure they thought they loved their daughters but there are some battles that can't be won. Most alcoholics who relapse end up drinking themselves stupid and never make it back. My father may not be able to come back."

"That is not going to happen in this case." Castle insisted.

"Castle you have not seen him when he is drunk, he fought for years to get free how can you know he can make it?" Beckett asked looking up at Castle , she needed him to give her some hope even if she couldn't admit it.

"Well your dad is not those other people, You are right I have not seen him when he is drunk but I have seen how much he cares for you and he will fight to get back to you." Castle said forcefully then he added. "Plus he has you and you have me." This finally got a weak smile from Beckett.

"I hope that is enough." Beckett said looking at her father's watch that was around her wrist.

"It will be. As long as he is willing to fight we will stand by him and I don't care what mother says I will not allow any alcohol in the safe house. We will use that time to help him win this battle." Castle stated and the look in his eyes left no doubt that he believe they could do this.

"I wish I could have your faith in my father and me." Beckett admitted with a sad sigh.

"Hey." Castle said taking her chin in his hand and forcing her to look at him. "You did this on your own last time and now you have a family behind you."

"A family?" Beckett asked raising her left eyebrow.

"I admit we may be a weird family but I think of us as one, we all care about each other and we will all be there for you every step of the way." Castle stated with a smile.

"Okay, we will do this together." Beckett said a moment latter as she sat up straight and wiped the last tear from her eye.

"Together." Castle confirmed and then he added carefully. "This brings me to something else I wanted to talk to you about. They will not let me out of here unless I agreed to see a therapist regularly, they say with everything I have been through I will need one if I am going to learn how to cope with this." Castle motioned with his left hand indicating his legs. "I had one session with the the hospital therapist so he could assess me and I will not pretend it went well but I did feel a little better afterwords."

" Good I am glad, but I am not sure why you think you need to tell me this." Beckett replied puzzled. "If you think it's because I will think less of you because you are seeing one you don't need to worry about that, You have been through a lot and I am glad you are getting help." Beckett added quickly.

"Thank you, but that wasn't why I was telling you." Castle replied with a small smile and then took a breath before he spoke again, he knew he would have to tread lightly on this next part if he wanted to avoid a fight. "I was thinking that you have been through as much as I have between helping me and Alexis, your break up with Josh, and now this so I was thinking maybe you would want to see one yourself too."

"Are you saying I am crazy Castle!" Beckett shot at him and it seemed that despite his best attempts to avoid it the fight was coming. "I am fine, I am handling everything, I am not the one who was shot you are. I can't pretend to know what you are going through and I am not going to act like I am the real victim here."

"That is not how I see you and yes you are right, at this moment I feel awful but what I am going through affects you and you have your own issues. I just don't want you to burn yourself out." Castle insisted doing his best to remain calm but his voice did raise a little on the last part.

"Thanks for your concern Castle but really I am fine." Beckett stated and it wasn't in the manner of her talking to the person she was closest to in the world, it was the manor that she used when talking to a reporter or the next of kin of a murder victim, she was trying to reassure him without giving him any real information.

"No you are not, You can't be." Castle said forcefully and Beckett opened her mouth to protest but he didn't let her. "No one could be and you just said you don't think any less of me for going and you once told me it helped you before so I don't understand why you are so against the idea now."

Beckett stood up from the bed and ran her hands through her hair as she looked up at the ceiling. "I can't do this right now. My dad is about to come in drunk and I need to focus on dealing with that, so can we please not fight right now?" She looked down at Castle pleading with her eyes.

"Okay." Castle said a moment later, clearly not happy with how things were going. "Just promise me you will think about it."

"Okay I will think about it." Beckett said with a frustrated huff.

Before Castle could say anything else they were interrupted by a smiling Doctor Baker and three nurses entering the room. "Well I have good news for you Mister Castle, the power wheelchair you ordered has arrived so we are now ready to run the final tests, remove those tubes, and get you out of here." The middle aged, jolly, British doctor said with a big smile on his face.

"Great because I don't know if anyone has told you this but the food here tastes like monkey barf mixed with pipe cleaner." Castle said with a smile that he was forcing. He felt bad about himself and now he was worried about Beckett and wondering if their relationship could even last if she was getting this defensive this quickly but he wouldn't let anyone see this, he couldn't, He had given the people in his life enough trouble already. Instead he would do what he always did when he was in trouble and didn't know what to do, he would plaster on a smile and charm his way out of it.

"Well then the sooner we get this done the better." Doctor Baker said with a chuckle. "To be honest I bring my lunch with me every day because I wouldn't give the food we serve here to a dog who was already dying." He said in a stage whisper as if he was telling Castle some secret that the writer was not supposed to know. This at least seemed to lighten the mood in the room for the moment. The doctor then turned to Kate. "I'm sorry but I will need you to leave the room so we have the space we need to work in here, detective Beckett." He said politely.

"I understand." Beckett said and then she turned her attention to Castle. "I will be just outside in the hall." Beckett said pointing out the door.

"Understood." Castle said and then added brightly. "The next time you seem me I will be mobile and able to get into trouble again."

"Is there any way you could keep him in that bed for the next thirty or forty years?" Beckett asked turning to Doctor Baker.

"I am afraid that would be against hospital policy, but just remember his wheelchair runs off a battery that can be unplugged." The doctor said with a chuckle.

"That's good to know.." Beckett replied thoughtfully.

"And she said I was a jackass." Castle said to one of the nurses. "Picking on the guy in the wheelchair is pretty low Beckett." he added with a sigh looking at the detective.

"Well consider it payback for three years of annoyance." Beckett retorted.

"As entertaining as all this is we do have work to do." Doctor Baker said as if he was talking to two out of control children.

"Right, I'll be in the hall." Beckett said and she left the room. She stepped out into the hall and was about to sit down and have some much needed quiet time when Will Sorrenson walked up to her.

"Hey, How are you doing?" Sorrenson asked quietly.

"I am fine." Beckett lied, in truth she was sick of being asked this question. She was spending so much time answering this question lately that she wasn't getting any time to herself to really think about if she was fine or not. She forced herself to believe that she was fine because she needed to be so she could be there for all the people who needed her but in truth what she really needed was some time to herself in the quiet to sort through everything that was happening but it seemed that day would not be today so she just sucked it up and lied both to other people and to herself.

"That's good." Sorrenson said nervously rubbing his hands together. "Look Kate your father was just brought in I had him put in the room next to Mister Castle's." He said pointing to the room to the right of Castle's and then he continued. "He is only half awake right now but I figured you would want to see him right away."

"Thanks, Will. You are right I do want to see him." More lies, in truth the last thing Beckett wanted was to see her father drunk again and since she still wasn't sure who she was more upset with herself or her father she would not have minded a few hours or better yet a few days to sort through what she was feeling but years of being a cop had taught her that you couldn't pick when you would get to deal with problems, you just had to deal with them as they came up. She could handle this after all she dealt with killers every day, she should be able to handle her own father. Everything would be okay she told herself. "I'll head in now." She said and then turned and walked away from Sorrenson.

The door to the room was closed and Beckett froze as she placed her hand on the doorknob. She then took a deep breath to calm herself and put on the same emotional armor that protected her when she was dealing with New York's most dangerous killers, it would be enough to protect her. She wouldn't let her father get inside her armor, she wouldn't let him hurt her again and hopefully if she wasn't hurt again it would keep her from hurting him again. She took one last breath to steady herself and then turned the knob as she braced herself for one of the hardest conversations she would ever have to have in her life.

**I know I promised Jim in this chapter but once in a while for some reason my meds take half the day to start working and before they kick in I can't put two words together in printed form, then I forgot Thanksgiving is coming up and I am having to get the house ready for that so I just ran out of time. I am really sorry so little happened in this chapter and I know it wasn't really worth the wait but it was the best I could do today. Thanks for sticking with me despite these troubles. The Next chapter will have Jim in it and it will move the plot forward as Castle and company will finally be leaving the hospital.**

**Once again you guys always give amazing feedback so thanks for reading and reviewing and putting up with my delays and short chapters. You guys are great.**

**Thanks go out again to Caskettfan5 for correcting this chapter.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

There are few things in life that are worse for a child then having to stand by and watch as a parent deteriorates and when that damage is self inflicted or worse yet the child feels it is their fault that makes the pain all the more acute. Sadly Kate Beckett was watching this happen to her father Jim Beckett for the second time in his life and what made it even worse was that she thought he had conquered this demon years ago but as she entered the hospital room where her father had been placed she saw that his darkest days had returned and her worst fears had been confirmed.

Jim Beckett was seated in a hospital bed with a saline solution iv attached to his right arm. His eyes were red and puffy as well as squinting and being unfocused, it was plain to see that he was having trouble seeing anything clearly. His hair was messy and his clothes were rumpled and then there was the smell. Even from across the room Kate could smell the odor of beer and cheap liquor and it churned her stomach and made her want to hold her breath until she left the room, how come she was able to deal with the stench of dead bodies but not with the smell of alcohol coming off of her father? The answer was of course that this was more personal, the smell brought her all the way back to the worst days right after her mother died when she would have to pick up her father from one bar or police precinct or other because he had drunk himself to sleep. Those dark days when all she wanted was someone to lean on but instead she had to learn how to be strong for the only person she had to help her. Those were the days when she learned to shut herself down and to keep her pain from everyone including herself. It was a weakness she could not afford and she had never looked back from that choice, after all if she had not made that choice she would have just broken down and there would have been no one to help her father. Letting your feelings out got yourself and others hurt, so she didn't do it and yet in the past few weeks she had forgotten this lesson, was that a mistake? At times she was happier then she had been since her mother had died but she had to admit her feelings had caused her to make mistakes that hurt others. As her mind was brought back to the years when she made the choice to put up and hide behind her wall and she was reminded of why she had put it up she had to wonder if she needed to get back behind it in order to survive this ordeal. After all if she hadn't have gotten emotional her father would not be here right now, she was a professional detective she should know better then to think any good could come from letting people in or letting her emotions control her actions, it was time to put things right and stop making the same mistakes over again. Helping her father had to be the most important thing in her life right now and to do that right she needed to shut off her emotions. So that is what she did, Kate took a deep breath and then shoved her emotions down to the pit of her stomach and let her face go completely stoic. She could do this.

"Katie you are alright?" Jim asked as Kate entered the room, closing the door behind her. Thankfully Jim Beckett had never been a mean drunk, just a very sad one looking to escape his pain who would some times get out of control and do things like remove his pants because he wanted to sleep at the bar. His biggest problem was that once he got one drink into himself he never wanted to stop drinking. Jim's voice had an out of tune almost sing song quality to it that it only took on when he was under the influence of alcohol and his face clearly showed that he was confused and having trouble focusing his eyes on his daughter no matter how much he may have wanted to focus on her, he was simply too drunk to see her clearly or focus on any one thing in the room.

"Mister Beckett I need you to sit back down in the bed so you don't rip your IV out." The Nurse said as she placed her hand on his chest and forced the older man back down into a sitting position.

"But you don't understand, my daughter is here and she isn't dead!" Jim protested trying to look at the nurse and failing.

"Okay, I understand and that is good news, but I still need you to sit down so you don't hurt yourself." The nurse said in a calm commanding tone.

"I don't care if I hurt myself, my daughter is over there!" Jim Beckett yelled out pointing with his left hand in a direction that was not even close to where his daughter was standing.

"Damn right you don't care about yourself!" Kate said angrily as she closed the distance between herself and her father and in that moment all her lofty ideals about keeping her emotions in check went out the window, hearing her father put into words what he had done caused all of her conflicting emotions to boil over and the force of what she said caused Jim to look at Kate and he seemed to be searching his addled brain for some kind of response but coming up short. Kate however was just aware and in control enough to know that she did not want to have this talk in front of a stranger so she turned her attention to the nurse for a moment. "Can you please give us a few minutes." She said to the young woman.

"I'm really not supposed to leave him alone." The nurse explained nervously. She clearly did not want to be a part of this scene any more then Kate wanted her to be there and she did not want to make the detective mad but she did have a job to do and she didn't want to get in trouble for leaving her post.

"You two should go home and get some sleep. I promise I'll still be here when you come back." Jim interrupted as he motioned for both the woman to leave.

"Is that the same type of promise that you made when you said you would never touch alcohol again?!" Kate blurted out before she could stop herself, half angry and half hurt.

"I didn't get that drunk. I just needed a few drinks because you are going to join your mother soon." Jim said defensively and then he looked away and started to break down into quiet tears.

"Please just give us a few minutes, I promise I will not let him hurt himself. I have been dealing with him like this since I was younger than you." Kate said forcefully as she fixed the nurse with the same glare that she used to stare down armed killers.

"Okay but I will be right outside the door." The nurse said a moment later and then she got up and left the room closing the door behind her.

Kate then turned her attention to her father who was still crying into his pillow. She was sure if she just left him there he would cry himself to sleep but she knew better then to let him do that because he needed to be kept in a sitting position and on a more personal note she was far too upset to wait to say what she had to say. "Why can't you ever be this sorry before you get drunk?!" She grumbled at her father as she took a seat beside him on the bed so she could keep him from getting up.

"I needed a drink, You are going to die just like your mom." Jim whined without looking at Kate.

"I am not going to die. I promise you." Kate said forcefully and she tried to make her father look at her but he shook his head out of her hand and dropped it back onto the pillow.

"Yes you are. You think you can't be hurt but you are going to keep going at this and they will take you from me just like your mother. I can't lose you Katie." Jim's voice trailed off and became quiet on the last part as if it was something he was not supposed to admit out loud.

"So you decided to chase me off by drinking again so if I do live you will still lose me?!" Kate let out a frustrated huff.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time. See my friends and brace for the pain." Jim said with a shrug.

"Those people are not your friends, your friends are the people who don't want you to die!" Kate shot back loud enough that her father finally looked at her.

"What is the point, I'll just live long enough to see you die?" Jim asked and tears began pouring out of his eyes. "I'm sorry I talked to the writer, but you will not listen to me and now he can't stop you so I have to watch you die. It's too much."

Kate's heart broke for a second, she was still incredibly angry with her father but she was also angry with herself, she had reduced him to this. He couldn't lose anyone else in his life so he had started trying to numb the pain and he didn't care if it killed him because at least that meant he wouldn't be around to watch her die. She couldn't stand this if only she had listened sooner, Castle would not have gotten shot and her father would not have fallen back into the pit he had worked so hard to crawl out of. Still she could not let herself feel the guilt and she could not wallow in self pity, she had to pull him out of this and that meant she had to remain calm and in control so she summoned all of her inner strength and pushed her own feelings aside and looked her father in the eyes and spoke with a firm, calm, and commanding voice. "Listen to me, I need you to pay attention and hear this."

"What ever you say sweetie but just don't let that one woman hear you, she is mean." Jim whispered and it was clear to Kate that he was losing his focus so she would have to be quick.

"Listen to me. I am not going anywhere, I have dropped the case and you and I are going into protective custody with the FBI where we will both be safe because I can't lose you either so you need to stop drinking. Do you understand?" Kate asked patiently, the same way she would speak to a child knowing that in his current state her father would find all of this a little hard to follow, no doubt she would have to answer a lot of questions tomorrow when he woke up very confused in the safe house but she at least had to try and explain what was going on to him in the hope that he would stop trying to destroy himself. One thing was for sure the stay at the safe house was going to be long and hard.

"Oh that case you dropped, it's at my house." Jim replied trying to be as helpful as his current confused state of mind would allow him to be.

"Okay thank you." Kate said quickly and she was starting to lose patience. "But do you understand that I am no longer going after mom's killers and the FBI is going to keep us safe?"

"You are, that's wonderful!" Jim beamed up at his daughter and this time the full meaning of her words seemed to sink in. "We should celebrate with a drink." He said trying to get up out of the bed.

"No, we shouldn't. Remember how you can't lose me? Well I can't lose you, so no more drinking!" Kate said forcefully as she pushed Jim back down on the bed and now she was starting to lose her temper. "What you need to do is sit here and get sober for the trip. You need to decide which is more important to you, having me in your life or drinking."

"Okay" Jim said softly as he lay back in the bed and his eyes were starting to glaze over he then did something that took Kate by surprise, he made a sound with his mouth. "Ring Ring, ring ring." He imitated the sound of a phone ringing. This drew a puzzled look from Kate and she was just about to write it off as nothing when he spoke. "It's my fault you know." He said looking guilty for the first time in the conversation but he was now too tired to push himself up.

"What is?" Kate asked. "Getting drunk, I know that.

"No not that." Jim said waving her off. "Well yes that is my fault too but your mother being murdered. Ring ring, ring ring." He made the sound of the phone again at the end.

"How is that your fault, you had nothing to do with it. You can't blame yourself." Kate said looking down at her father but he turned his head away in shame.

"Ring ring, ring ring. I didn't put the pieces together until last year when you told me it wasn't gang related but I could have saved her but I stopped her from going to the police. I said it was nothing." Jim said softly and then he started to cry again.

"What do you mean by that?" Kate asked putting a hand on her father's shoulder but her question went unanswered because her father had drifted off to sleep and she knew when he was drunk like this nothing could wake him up.

What could that have meant, she hoped it was just drunk talk but what if it wasn't what if it was true? What if he could have saved her mother, would she ever be able to forgive him, more importantly would he ever be able to forgive himself. She had thought the only reason he started drinking again was that she was in danger so now that she no longer was chasing her mother's killers getting him sober would be easier then last time but if there was more to it then it could be a lot harder then then she had at first thought. No, it couldn't mean anything. She told herself. It was just drunk talk after all these people were powerful and the police had helped cover up the murder so there was nothing her father could have done. It was just confused drunk talk, right?

This was all too much for Kate and she had to get out of the room, she took a few moments to collect herself and then got up and stepped out of the room as she left the nurse walked back in. Beckett leaned against the wall and put her right hand over her eyes, she was reaching her breaking point. As strange as the thoughts sounded in her own head at that moment she was looking forward to getting to the safe house. She hated the idea of hiding but once she was at the safe house she would have some quiet time to herself to sort through everything that had happened to her lately and how she felt about it. What she needed most at that moment was some sleep and time to think and once she got to the safe house she would have it. Right now that thought was the most appealing idea in the whole world to her. The chance to stretch out on a nice soft bed and sleep without worrying about anything, what could be better?

Beckett was just finishing these thoughts when she heard someone walk up to her, one thing was for sure she was not going to get any sleep before she got to the safe house. In her head she let out as sigh as she opened her eyes to see who it was who seemed to need to talk to her. It was Will Sorrenson and what she saw on his face made her mad, it was a look of pity. The last thing Kate Beckett needed at that precise moment was pity from an ex boyfriend she had broken up with for good reasons.

"How is he and how are you?" Will asked carefully.

"He is fine and I am fine. He is just drunk, I have handled this before, a lot of times." Beckett answered tersely.

"Okay, that's good. Glad to hear it." Sorrenson answered carefully and it was clear from his expression and the way that he said it that he didn't believe her.

"It's true! Everything is fine. We can deal with this." Beckett insisted.

"I didn't say anything." Sorrenson said lifting up his hands in surrender, he knew better then to get on the wrong end of Beckett's wrath on a day like today.

"Was there anything else you wanted?" Beckett asked rather harshly.

"Yeah I just wanted to tell you that the agents came in from your father's place with your suitcase and some stuff we packed for him." He reported in a business like manner, he decided it was best not to comment on the problems he was sure Kate had, those were the writer's problems now and at that exact moment his thoughts were running along the lines of "and he can have them." His life was complicated enough at the moment.

"Good, anything else?" Beckett asked, she could sense that wasn't all he was there to say.

"Yes we are getting things set up to transport you all to the safe house. I am going to tell you what I told Mister Castle and his family. If there is anyone you need to talk to before you leave you should do it now because once we go you will have to hand over your cellphone. We know these people have agents in law enforcement so we can't take the chance of them tracking you via your cellphones. We will issue you new prepaid cellphones once we get to the safe house but you can not use them to contact anyone you know since it will put both you and them in danger." Sorrenson explained and he braced himself for Beckett's response. He knew she would not like this and he had already faced the wrath of an actress and a teenage girl who had been told they had to cut themselves off from everything they knew. Truth be told he considered himself lucky to be alive after that incident. To his surprise Kate's response was gentle and controlled as if she saw the logic of his argument and accepted it. Maybe she was just too drained emotionally to react any other way? He didn't know, all he did know that he was just happy not to have another fight on his hands.

"Okay, there is someone I would like to call." She replied.

"Alright, I'll just give you some privacy." Sorrenson said quietly and he turned and walked down the hall giving Beckett some space.

To tell the truth Beckett really didn't feel like talking to anyone at that moment, the last thing she wanted was to have yet another conversation but if she was going away for who knows how long there was one person she owed a call, she just hoped that she would not press her to talk about the day's events because she was sick of talking about them, she was sick of thinking about them, hell she was sick of living them! Still she owed Lanie a goodbye call at the very least, so with a sigh she pulled her cellphone out of her pocket and scrolled through the phone book until she found her friend's number and she pressed it.

"Well it's about time I heard from you!" A cheery yet annoyed voice answered a moment later.

"Hey Lanie, I am sorry I haven't called but things have been out of control." Beckett said in an apologetic tone and she meant it. Her only real friend deserved better then to be cut off and left to worry when things got tough. Lanie had been there for her in her darkest times and put up with her crying to her about her loneliness when now that Beckett looked back on the events if she were being honest she could see that the problem had largely been self inflicted. She should have said something when Agent Shaw made it clear how Castle felt but for some stupid reason she had held back and hurt herself and Josh not to mention Castle by doing it. Still the past couldn't be changed and she just had to push forward and try to be a good friend to Lanie from this point forward.

"What's wrong?" Lanie asked concerned.

"I don't really want to get into it right now." Beckett said with a sigh.

"Maybe I can help, come on it will help to get it all out there and besides haven't I been kept in the dark enough?" Lanie pressed.

Beckett could tell that her friend was sick and tired of having to guess about how she was doing and was getting more then a little fed up with how closed off she was. Did she owe it to her to open up? She guessed she did so with a sigh she went over the events of the past few days answering any questions Lanie had along the way, by the time she finished with the story of her father turning up drunk she was near to tears.

"Wow, I am so sorry." Was all Lanie said gently at first and then she added. "What does Writer Boy have to say about all this, I know he will be happy to help."

"He just says I need counseling, he thinks I am crazy or something." Beckett let out bitterly.

"Did he use those exact words?" Lanie asked sceptically, as if she was a mother trying to get the truth out of a naughty child.

"Well he didn't use those words exactly, but it's what he meant." Beckett replied defensively, now sounding like a naughty child trying to justify a lie or half truth they had just told.

"Really, tell me what he said exactly. Because I don't think that man would ever think you are crazy." Lanie demanded, still not convinced.

"Well he said he was getting some so maybe I should get some too." Beckett admitted at last.

"Don't you think he may have a point?" Lanie asked her friend pointedly.

"I don't know." Beckett said with a frustrated sigh and Lanie waited a moment for her to gather her thoughts. "Maybe but he was the one who was shot."

"Maybe but you were the one who had to watch him die. Girl I saw the breakdown you had. Talking to someone about it couldn't hurt." Lanie interrupted.

"It's not that simple." Beckett protested. "I have Alexis, Castle, and my Father counting on me, I can't afford to have a break down right now."

"And how much good do you think you are going to do them if you run yourself into the ground and let life destroy you?" Lanie pressed.

"So you think I should go in for counseling?" Beckett asked after giving it a moment's thought.

"I don't know." Lanie said a few moments latter with a sigh. "All I do know is that you had a ton of issues before this and having your father turn up drunk and having to watch the man you love die can't of helped. I am not there with you every second but Writer Boy is and I know he wants what is best for you so I think you should at least consider it."

"Yeah I guess, it just seems like one thing too many on my plate." Beckett conceded a moment later.

"Look do you want this relationship you have with Castle to work out or not?" Lanie asked forcefully.

"Of course I do, how can you ask me that?" Beckett demanded, shocked. Then she added. "He has been waiting three years, we love each other, and if I am being completely honest I think he may be the one." Beckett was shocked to hear herself admit this out loud for the first time. Maybe there was something to be said for calling your best friend when your emotions were raw, if nothing else it was forcing her to be honest with herself.

"If that is true then I think you should go in and at least try the counseling." Lanie said evenly.

"Why, do you think Castle will break up with me if I don't?" Beckett asked and there was a hint of panic in her voice.

"No, I don't think that at all!" Lanie injected quickly and then went on to explain calmly. "It's just that girl some times you can have more issues then a news stand and you tend not to let the people who love you in to help you and that can be hard for a man like Castle to sit back and watch."

"What do you mean a man like Castle?" Beckett asked puzzled.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you don't see it girl, it's the biggest reason you love him!" Lanie replied her tone full of disbelief. "If you just go by the papers he is a self centered playboy but we have both been around him long enough to know that is only the part he lets out when he is bored and wants to have some fun. The thing that he really lives for is to help the people in his life that he cares about. He is loaded but he doesn't seem to place much value on the money besides what he can do for the people he loves with it. He dropped one hundred grand just to get a lead on your mother's killer. The man really feels alive when he is helping people and if you want to know what I think, he sticks around the precinct as much to help people as to be around you."

Beckett smiled a bit at the memory and then asked. "Okay I get it he has to help people and you are right I love him for it, but what does that have to do with me and counseling?"

"You will not let him in to help you." Lanie explained forcefully. "So he just has to sit by and watch you in pain, how long do you think he is going to be able to handle that? If you will not let him help you have to at least let someone else help you or this relationship will fall apart."

Beckett thought about this for a moment and she couldn't refute any of her friend's logic and she did want things to work out and she didn't want to cause Castle any more pain, so maybe she could do it, for Castle. After all didn't she owe it to him to give them the best shot she could. "Okay, I'll do it." Beckett said quietly a moment latter.

"Well good for you, I really don't want to have to sit with you through another break up." Lanie replied.

This brought a sad smile to Beckett's lips and then her thoughts returned to the reason she had called in the first place. "Lanie there is something I have to tell you?" She said carefully. "You are not going to hear from me for a while but I will be okay so I need you not to worry."

"What's going on. Are you and Writer Boy eloping already?" Lanie teased.

"No nothing like that." Beckett explained. "The FBI is taking us into witness protection at some point today and until they think we will be safe we can't contact anyone from our lives. I'm sorry."

Lanie seemed to take a minute to process this before replying. "Well I will miss you and that is a fact." She said sadly and then added. "But really I think it is for the best. These people keep coming and I will feel a lot better knowing that you are not standing out there with a big bullseye on your back."

"Thanks, I will miss you too Lanie." Beckett said with a smile. "Can you do me a favor and explain everything to the boys and tell them I said bye?" Beckett asked her friend. "I am just feeling so drained and I am not up to explaining all this twice more."

"Sure, no problem." Lanie replied.

"Thanks and thanks for talking some sense into me." Beckett said and at that moment she felt truly lucky to have such a good friend.

"Anytime, what else am I here for." Lanie replied brightly and then added on a sadder note. "I will miss you and I look forward to seeing you when this whole thing is over."

"Me too Lanie, me Too. Goodbye." Kate said and a tear almost escaped her eye but she caught it, she would not cry over this. She would see Lanie again and hopefully very soon. She hung up the call and then took a moment to think.

Lanie was right she owed it to Castle to let him help her, sure he had his issues but so did she and she didn't like it when he shut her out so she could not shut him out. She saw now that since he had woken up they had been trying to act normal and avoiding all the things that had changed for fear of scaring the other person off but relationships that lasted were not build on hiding things from each other. Beckett wanted to help Castle not hurt him but she knew nothing would hurt him more then if she let this relationship go the way of all her others, so she would not let that happen. She still didn't like the idea of going in for counseling and she wasn't sure how much good it would do but if it would do any good and give Castle some much needed peace of mind she would give it a shot. She now had a plan of action. She didn't really want to talk to anyone else but she decided that she had to, right away her next stop would be making things right with Castle. They may have started out on the wrong footing but she would now be completely honest with him and put their relationship on a solid footing for the first time. They would make it, she would not let anything least of all her own pride and fears stand in the way.

Before she could put this plan into action she saw someone walking down the hall towards her. The person was Alexis Castle, and she was crying.

**Well the holiday that I somehow forgot was coming through all my plans for this week to the wind. I hope this chapter was worth the wait.**

**As always you guys are the best and thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Once more thank you Caskettfan5 for correcting my many mistakes in this chapter.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Alexis Castle approached detective Kate Beckett with tears streaming out of the corner of her eyes, slowly and looking in no direction but dead ahead. The girl was clearly in shock over something, she was crying but also lost to the world at the same time and was seeking comfort from someone she trusted. For a moment Beckett had to wonder how that had ever become her, after all before this she and the girl had never been very close. Then Beckett's mind drifted back to the events of the past year and she had to wonder, had she just missed the signs of how much this girl cared for and looked up to her? When she had interned at the precinct Beckett had just assumed it was because she looked up to her father and wanted to be like him, but had it really been because she was looking up to her? When she had come to her for advice on a student exchange program Beckett had also just assumed it was because she was the only person the girl knew even slightly who had been part of such a program, but had there been more too it then that? When she had stayed briefly at the loft the teenager had always smiled at her and had talked to her every morning, again she had just assumed the redhead was either being polite or trying to find out what her intentions were towards her father, but now she saw that there may have been more to it then that. This thought shocked Beckett for a moment, she had never been a kids or baby person and she had never thought of herself as anyone who should be looked up to. After all she had so many problems and had made so many mistakes in her life and plus she was just a cop. She didn't think she was ready to be a role model for a teenage girl when she couldn't figure her own life out and she sure had not asked for it. Wasn't that the sort of job that should go to a mother? Then Beckett remembered who the girl's mother was and it became clear why she would turn to the detective in her life instead. What was this hold she seemed to have over members of the Castle family? They all seemed to think she was some sort of super hero when the truth was she didn't even think of herself as a regular hero, she was just a cop doing her job and she had a lot more problems then most cops she knew. How was she supposed to do this? Still she may not have asked for the job but she had taken it so despite the fact that she didn't feel ready for it she had to do the job as best as she could and hope for the best. So she took a breath and began walking down the hall to meet the teenage redhead.

Alexis stopped just short of the detective and stood there in the middle of the hall with silent tears streaming down her face but she would not look up at Beckett.

"Alexis what is wrong?" Beckett asked showing how concerned she was with her tone of voice. It was not a brilliant opening but it was the best Beckett could come up with in her current state of mind. Her greatest fear was that something unexpected had happened to the girl's father since she had left his hospital room. Alexis didn't answer so Beckett, struggling to keep her own fears under control stepped forward and hugged the girl. A second later Alexis returned the hug and buried her face in Beckett's chest but she still did not look up at her. After about a minute of this Alexis' crying seemed to come under control and the redhead let go of the the detective so Beckett let go of her and let the teenager take a step back and then Beckett spoke again. "Has something gone wrong with your father?" She asked gently. She had to know what was going on and could not wait another second to know what was going on with Castle.

"No, it's not that." Alexis said with a sniff and then looked away falling silent again.

"Then what is it?" Beckett pressed and then added in a comforting tone. "Whatever it is I am here for you and will do my best to help. It's clear you need to talk to somebody about whatever it is so please talk to me." Beckett's feelings at that moment were a mixture of concern and relief. She was concerned about whatever had happened to shake Alexis so much but she was also relieved that it wasn't something wrong with Castle. At that moment she wanted nothing more then to race into the writer's hospital room and confirm with her own eyes that he was alright but Alexis clearly needed someone at this moment so she would deal with the girl and her problem first.

"Why don't we take a seat and you can tell me all about it." Beckett said motioning to a medium sized metal bench that was just a little ways down the hall. Alexis nodded her agreement punctuated by another sniff and followed Beckett to the bench where they sat down. Alexis then leaned her head on Beckett's right shoulder and continued to sniff but at least her crying had stopped. Beckett just kept rubbing the girl's head and muttering "It will be okay." over and over again despite the fact that she had no idea what she was reassuring the girl would be okay, it just seemed like what was needed at that moment.

A few minutes later Alexis sat up with one last sniff and for the first time since they had met in the hall looked up at the detective. Her eyes were red and had a lost look to them but she seemed to be under control at that point so Beckett decided that it felt like the right moment to find out what was going on. "Are you ready to tell me about it?" Beckett asked carefully. Alexis nodded that she was so Beckett asked once again. "Okay, what has happened?"

"I called Ashley to tell him I wouldn't be able to talk to him for a while." Alexis said brokenly. Over the past week Beckett had heard a lot about Ashley, the boy had called three or four times a day to talk to Alexis, he seemed to be the teenager's first love. Suddenly Beckett had a sinking feeling, she had a fairly good idea of where this story was going but she kept it to herself and let Alexis continue telling it, knowing that the best thing to do was to let the girl talk it out. "He was really upset. He said this summer was supposed to be our time to be together before he went away to college. He said he was my boyfriend and I should still talk to him every day. He couldn't understand that I am not allowed to talk to him."

Alexis then broke down into tears again and Beckett just held her as she cried again, this was not going well but truth be told Beckett had no idea what to say, so she just hugged the girl and waited for her to cry it all out of her system. When Alexis finally finished and pushed herself away again Becket looked down at the girl and asked gently. "Then what happened?"

"He said that he couldn't wait for months and months wondering if he would ever see me again." Alexis explained as a tear ran down her face and then she became angry and there was a fire in her eyes. "He then said I wasn't taking the relationship seriously, Can you believe that?!"

"I am so sorry, none of this is your fault." Beckett said trying her best to help the girl but not sure exactly what to say to make this all better. In truth it was all her fault, it was her mother's case and she was the one who wouldn't step away and now she had messed up Alexis' life in more ways then one, so she would stand by the girl and try to fix the damage as best as she could.

"I know that, I didn't ask for my dad to get shot or for a bomb to go off. Shouldn't he just be happy I am okay!" Alexis raged standing up and walking back and forth in front of Beckett. Beckett didn't stand up to follow the girl instead she silently sat on the bench and let her vent all of her anger and frustration. "He says that he loves me but then all he cares about is what he is going to do this summer, that can't be love, right?!" Alexis fumed as she turned to face Beckett from across the hall.

"No, it's not." Beckett agreed.

"If he really loved me wouldn't he be happy I was going to be protected and shouldn't he be more worried about my safety then his summer plans?!"

"You are right." Beckett nodded, agreeing again.

"I mean he acts like this is all my fault when it isn't, I didn't ask to be cut off from all of my friends and I sure as hell didn't ask for someone to try and kill my dad!" Alexis nearly yelled as she run her hands through her hair and shocked Beckett, she had never heard the normally soft spoken girl curse before and then it hit her just how badly she had screwed up and she couldn't find any words so she just looked down at her feet, a feeling of shame overwhelming her for the moment.

This caused Alexis to come rushing over to Beckett and kneel down in front of her and place her hand on the older woman's shoulder. "You don't think I blame you, do you Kate?" Alexis asked desperately.

"Well it is my fault." Beckett said looking at the girl with a beaten and guilty expression on her face.

"No it isn't!" Alexis insisted firmly. "You didn't want your mother to get killed any more then I wanted my dad to get shot and you didn't do anything wrong, you have a right to find the people who killed her."

"But if I had just dropped the case none of this would have happened." Beckett explained.

"You didn't know it went this far when you and my dad started looking into it and you had no way of knowing these people would go this far. You were only doing your job." Alexis said sternly.

"How can you say that, have can you forgive me after everything I have done to you?" Beckett asked shocked, she could not for a moment understand how the girl could stand being near her after everything that had happened.

"Because there is nothing to forgive. You didn't do any of this. If you are going to blame someone blame the monsters who murdered your mother and who shot my dad, they are the ones who are forcing us to hide because they are willing to blow up a hospital to get to you and my dad. Blame them, that is who I blame." Alexis said firmly.

"Thank you." Was all Beckett could bring herself to say, she was shocked by this display from the girl.

"Remember you have been here for me since this started and you dropped the case as soon as it became clear that it was putting other people in danger, that is what matters." Alexis said standing up.

"Yeah I guess, it just doesn't feel like I have done enough." Beckett admitted and she was shocked to find herself saying this. What had happened between her and this child that she was now being comforted by her when it should be the other way around? Why was she being so honest with a teenager when she couldn't be honest with her father or Castle? How had they developed this bond in so short a space of time? Beckett wasn't sure and it was just one more thing she was going to have to sort through later but right now she needed to make sure the girl standing in front of her was okay.

"You know the break up isn't your fault either, right?" Beckett asked looking up at the teenager.

"I know." Alexis said with a sigh as she sat down beside the older woman. "And logically I know this was just a high school dating thing and that it wouldn't have lasted but it still hurts." Alexis said and she sniffed but she didn't cry, instead she leaned over against the detective and Beckett put her right arm around the girl.

"Yeah I know how it feels, these things are never easy and I wish you didn't have to go through it. Just know that you will find someone else. You are an amazing person and you will find a guy who will stick by you through things like this some day." Beckett said comforting the girl.

"Yeah I guess, it just will not be Ashley." Alexis said with a sad sigh.

"Are you going to talk to your father about this?" Beckett asked.

"No, he has enough problems of his own right now without me adding my high school drama into the mix." Alexis replied.

"Alexis your father always has time for you and I know he will want to help you." Beckett said seriously as she turned to face the girl sitting beside her while removing her arm.

"I know and normally I would go to him but he is going to be getting used to being in a wheelchair and I don't want to add to his stress." Alexis explained with a sigh.

"You will not be." Beckett said firmly but Alexis didn't seem to buy it so she continued to explain. "You father lives to help you and the only thing that will add to his stress is if you treat him differently now that he has been disabled. What he needs most from you is to know that you still trust him and that he can still help you. The worst thing you could do is make him feel useless and force him to watch you in pain."

"Are you sure, you don't think this will be too much?" Alexis asked, clearly worried but it also seemed to Beckett that she was looking for permission to take her problems to her father once again.

"I am sure." Beckett said firmly. "It's only his legs that are not working not his head or his heart, you both still need each other."

"Okay, thanks." Alexis said looking up at Beckett and she took a moment to think before she continued. "I guess I knew all that I just needed to hear someone say it out loud, thanks for letting me talk to you."

"Any time, are you feeling better?" Beckett responded with a small smile.

"A little, but it still hurts." Alexis admitted.

"It will for a time, this is sadly all part of growing up." Beckett said as her smile turned bittersweet as her own memories of having her heart broken in high school washed over her.

"Yeah I know, it doesn't make it suck any less when you have to live through it." Alexis said somewhat sadly.

"No it doesn't and it's okay to be sad." Beckett said nodding her agreement.

"Well thanks again for seeing me through it." Alexis said with a grateful smile and then pushed herself up into a sitting position and the two woman sat there quietly for a few moments.

It was about the time that Alexis finished drying her eyes that she and Beckett heard a strange sound coming their way. It was Doctor Baker but he was not the one making the sound of a small motor and the first one to speak, that honor fell to the man directly behind him, Richard Castle.

"Hey check out the new wheels!" He beamed forcing a smile and Beckett looked up at him and she didn't know why she was shocked, of course any wheelchair Castle ordered would be a top of the line custom model with all sorts of insane extras.

The wheelchair was pitch black with a dark red racing stripe going all the way around it from one arm rest to the other. The wheels were bigger, lower to the ground, and the tires were larger then most wheelchairs. Beckett guessed that this feature was to make it all terrain so it wouldn't be limiting to just the inside of buildings and paved streets. The left hand arm rest contained all the controls needed to operate the chair and a read out that indicated how much charge was left in the battery. The right hand arm rest had some sort of touchscreen control pad that seemed to be inactive at that moment, Beckett wasn't sure what purpose it served but she was sure it was something related to gadgets that most wheelchairs didn't have. There were also some holes are the inside of the arm rests, Beckett assumed that this were for securing some sort of tray that that could hold either food or a laptop computer on it. There was also a cup holder on the right arm rest in front of the touchscreen and what looking like an Apple charging station on the left hand arm rest behind the controls for the chair it's self.

"Dad you are up!" Alexis practically screamed as she raced towards her father and jumped into his lap, hugging him hard, Castle winced a little in pain but he didn't let his daughter see it and instead returned the hug, at that moment the teenager completely forgot about all her own troubles, she was completely happy for the first time in a long time.

The scene unfolding in front of her made Beckett smile herself as she stood up and she started to believe that everything was going to be okay. The smile quickly left her lips as she walked over to Castle and for the first time ever found herself looking down at him, she was so used to looking up at him that it made the whole world feel wrong. It then completely sunk in just how limited Castle was going to be by his disability, and she couldn't imagine what his life, what their lives were going to be like moving forward. Still he was alive and mobile and that was the important thing. Plus Castle and his daughter seemed to be happy so Beckett was not about to spoil their moment, she was sure the next few months would be hard enough so she would let them have this moment of perfect happiness, she painted on a smile and stepped forward.

"Nice to see you out of that bed, finally." She said looking down at her partner and then as Alexis got out of his lap she thought she spotted fear in his eyes. She knew what it was, now that she was aware of just how much things had changed for him did it change the way she felt about him? She knew only one way to show him that it did not so she did something she normally wouldn't do in public. She bent down and kissed him, this got an instant reaction from him as he reached up to her head and pulled her down deepening the kiss. Alexis Slammed her eyes shut and turned away but didn't say or do anything to stop them. A few moments latter they both finally pulled away.

"Wow." Was all Castle could say softly.

"Yeah it just keeps getting better and better." Beckett agreed.

"Oh Richard it's so good to see you up!" They were interrupted by a loud female voice coming at them from behind, the voice of course belonged to Martha Rodgers who came running down the hall and hugged her son, just barely giving Beckett time to step out of the way before she did so.

"Well it's good to be up and around." Castle replied unable to think of anything else to say.

"Excuse me but there are some final instructions I would like to go over with all of you." Doctor Baker said breaking into the happy reunion. All eyes turned to the fat doctor.

"First of all her are some prescriptions for pain medications that you will want to fill right away." Doctor Baker said holding out several pieces of paper.

"I'll take those." Another voice said. It was Sorrenson who had at some point while everyone was paying attention to Castle joined the little gathering in the hall. He held out his hand and snatched the papers from the doctor, who didn't look too happy about this.

"Mister Castle is this alright with you?" He asked concerned, looking at the writer in the wheelchair.

"It's best if you don't go out in public, I will have these taken care of." Sorrenson explained simply, turning to face Castle.

"Well I guess it's okay." Castle said with a sigh, not liking the way this man seemed to be trying to cut him out of his own life and put him down in front of Beckett.

"All right." Doctor Baker said with a huff and then continued. "You will need to have a nurse help Mister Castle in and out of the chair for things like getting in and out of bed and going to the bathroom until you have have learned how to assist him." Doctor Baker looked at the family.

"That is already taken care of as well." Sorrenson said in full take charge FBI special agent mode.

This got an eye roll from Castle, he still didn't like the man much and he hated the idea of him running his life. He was fed up with the sight of him after just one day, he didn't want to think about how he was going to feel in a week or two. What was more the man was in a perfect position to make a move on Kate, and now he had the fact that he could walk going for him. Castle was not happy at all. One thing was for sure wheelchair or no wheelchair, Castle was not going down without a fight.

"Okay here is some information about Mister Castle's condition and how it should be treated." Doctor Baker said and he held out a stack of papers about as thick as a phone book that seemed to be freshly printed off of a computer and stapled together.

"I'll take those too." Sorrenson said snatching the papers and now Castle was getting angry, he shot Sorrenson a look but the special agent seemed to miss it. Castle guessed the "man" wasn't smart enough to pick up on something like that, they would have to have words later.

"Are there any questions?" Doctor Baker asked.

"What are the chances that my dad will walk again?" Alexis asked nervously, Beckett was grateful that she had asked the question that was on her mind, she really wanted to know the answer but she was afraid if she asked the question Castle would think that it was important to her and it would affect how she felt about him so she was very glad she didn't have to ask.

The doctor took a breath and then began to explain in a professional manor. "Recovery from spinal nerve damage is a hard thing to predict. However Mister Castle does stand a good chance of recovering since the nerves were not destroyed only damaged. They may repair themselves in time but it will take a year or more, if it happens at all."

"But what are the chances." Martha pressed and everyone could tell she was scared, she needed her only son to be okay.

"I would say he has a sixty forty shot in favor of recovery." The doctor said after giving it a moment's thought. This drew smiles from everyone except Castle who was still steamed at Sorrenson that is until he looked at Kate and for some reason seeing her smile at him caused some of the old longings to come back and a thought crossed his mind but he didn't want to voice it in front of others.

"Can you all give Kate and I a moment alone with the doctor?" Castle asked nervously.

"Why dad, what's up?" Alexis asked puzzled.

"It's just I have something private to ask...him." Castle explained becoming flustered.

"Oh for goodness sake Richard, we are all adults here!" Martha said throwing up her hands in exasperation. "I think what my son wants to ask you is if he and Kate can have sex." Martha said turning her attention to Doctor Baker.

This got a reaction from everyone in the room. Kate turned away her face red, Alexis said "Yuck" and looked like she was going to be sick, Sorrenson looked like he couldn't decide what reaction to have so he just stood in place looking uncomfortable, and Castle let out a stern and angry "Mother!"

"It's alright. I had a feeling this question would come up." Doctor Baker said with a nervous chuckle and then he looked at Castle. "The answer is that yes as long as you are careful and use positions that don't put stress on the spine it should be fine. There are details in the paperwork I gave agent Sorrenson."

"Okay that is TMI!" Alexis said looking like she was going to die of embarrassment and Beckett didn't look much better, suddenly another go with her drunken father didn't seem like a bad idea to the detective.

"Are there any other questions?" The doctor asked, everyone shook their heads no, so he then said his farewell and headed into the elevator down the hall.

There was a very uncomfortable silence in the hall but it only lasted a minute as Sorrenson stepped in front of the group and began to speak, taking charge. "And it is time for us to go now too." He informed the group. "I just got word that the vans are here."

"Excuse me but vans?" Beckett asked. "Will I thought we were all going to the same place." The fact that Beckett used Sorrensons first name did not escape Castle's notice and it worried him but no one was playing attention to him at that moment so they missed the look of hurt and anger that past over his face.

"We are." Sorrenson explained. "All three vans are set up to take all of us to an FBI safe house where we will be met with a security team. All three are armored, as well as having partitions that will keep the drivers from seeing or over hearing anything in the back. The drivers have been instructed not to get out of the vans and each van will take a different route to a different safe house, the drivers will not even know which van we are really in."

Well at least he isn't taking any chances Beckett thought to herself. It was then that she saw a sight that brought a single tear to her eye. Two FBI agents came out of her father's room carrying the sleeping form of her passed out drunk father between them. Still now was not the time to focus on that, they were all leaving their old lives behind for who knew how long and that single thought shook Beckett to her core. Still this was her family now and she would be strong for them so she took a deep breath and squared her shoulders and fell in line with the group, walking beside Castle as they followed Sorrenson down the hall and to their new lives. Castle must have sensed Beckett's mood because he picked that moment to reach up with his hand and give hers a reassuring squeeze. That one action gave Beckett hope that no matter what the future held as long as they were together they would be okay.

**All right as always you guys are great and thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

The drive to the safe house lasted four or five hours with one stop at a gas station for the the van to refuel and to give everyone a chance to use the restroom. It was at this stop that Beckett got her first real glimmer of just how hard the days, weeks, or months that followed would be for Castle and everyone else. Of course he needed help using the toilet since he was not fit to lift himself in or out of the chair but he wouldn't let Beckett help him, he was not about to let Alexis help him, and he sure as hell didn't want to let Sorrenson or one of the two other agents help him. This little detail turned into a five minute fight that nearly resulted in Castle breaking down. Finally Castle relented and let one of the agents, a young man named Edwards help him but he was in a bad mood for the rest of the trip and spent his time stewing quietly and not talking to anyone. It was clear he felt humiliated and useless after the incident and Beckett tried to reassure him by holding his hand but he just pulled it away. Beckett was hurt and wanted to say something but she decided that the back of a van surrounded by other people was not the best place to do so. She hoped that by the next day after he had a good night's sleep Castle would be feeling better.

Jim Beckett woke up a few times during the trip, he was awake just long enough to mumble something and then fall back asleep. Luckily Jim had never been an angry drunk, just a depressed one looking to numb the pain of his life so Kate didn't have to worry about her father flipping out on anyone or anything like that. All she had to worry about was getting him sober so that he didn't drink himself to death and that was a big enough job. Still a long stay in a secluded location without any alcohol would make that job easier but he was sure to be going through the pains of detox for the next few days and that would not be pleasant. Kate was not looking forward to the next few days, that was for sure. She had hoped she was done with days like these years ago and she didn't like that her father had fallen so far backwards, still there was nothing that could be done about it now and she would just have to deal with the problem she had and she knew that it could be a lot worse.

Martha did her best to keep the mood cheerful by telling exaggerated stories about times she was on tour with various plays. Most of the stories focused on the details of how she traveled from place to place and how thanks to penny pinching producers the travel conditions were far worse then what they had now. Being that they were currently in a van with no windows most of the actress' companions found this hard to believe.

Early on in the trip Alexis Castle began looking a little ill, Kate Beckett was sitting across from her and noticed. After about half an hour of the teenager looking ill and not looking like she was getting any better the detective leaned forward to talk to the redhead.

"Alexis are you alright?" Kate whispered, concerned.

"Yeah I am fine." Alexis replied a moment later. "I just don't do well in cars without windows, I am getting a little motion sick." Beckett nodded that she understood and didn't bring up the issue again, she figured the girl had enough on her plate without people making a fuss over her.

Finally after what seemed like days the occupants of the van heard and felt it make a turn on to what felt like gravel and after about a minute of driving on it the van came to a stop.

"Okay we are here, Everybody out." Sorrenson said, forcing a smile.

It took a good five minutes for everyone to get out of the van, mainly because it took a while to lower Castle in his wheelchair out of it. When they finally stepped out everyone except Jim Beckett, who was dragged into the house by the two FBI agents, took a minute to stretch after their long car ride and take in their surroundings.

The area they were in was thickly wooded but the trees had been cleared for several acres around the good sized two story house and the gravel drive way that led to it. The drive way seemed to be at least a couple of hundred yards long but that was just a guess on any of their parts. The woods were full of the sounds of bugs and birds all conversing like mad, if nature had a version of Twitter this was it. Looking just past the house two rather large sheds could be seen just to the left of the house and back another several hundred yards, they seemed to have their own gravel drive way that went past the shed in front and stopped at the shed in back. Just beyond the shed in the back the woods got thicker again. If there were any neighbors around they could not be seen through the trees or heard over the natural sounds of the woods.

The house itself while not large was a good sized two story house that if Castle were forced to guess he would assume had been built in the early to mid nineties. The house had white siding on the side and bright blue decorative shutters on either side of the windows. Both the front and back of the house featured wheelchair ramps that led onto large porches. The porch on the front of the house was open to the cool night breeze and the smell of the woods after a fresh rain, but the back porch was screened in and had a large sliding door that opened up not only to the back yard but to a decent sized in ground swimming pool that featured a diving board on the end farthest from the house. It was clear that whoever had build this house while not rich by Castle's standard did have a decent amount of money and had made themselves comfortable and judging by how low the windows went Castle guessed that at least one of the people the house had been built for was in a wheelchair and the house had been built with this person in mind. It would do but the whole place was just too quiet for Castle's liking. It was only just after nine and and the only light he could see came from the house and the only people he could hear were standing beside him. For someone who thrived on New York's night life, this place, wherever it was would be a huge adjustment.

"Can I have everyone's attention please." Sorrenson called out as if he was calling a meeting to order after giving everyone a few minutes to look around. All eyes turned to the FBI special agent and he began to speak. "I would just like to take a few minutes to familiarize all of you with the house, your cover story, and what to do in case of an emergency."

"Where are we?" Alexis asked, she clearly was no more impressed by their surroundings then her father.

"You are in the countryside of Sussex Country Delaware, I wanted to get you as far away from New York as I could without putting you all on a plane or spending too long in transit." Sorrenson explained.

"Why?" Castle asked puzzled, he clearly was not impressed by the FBI special agent.

"Whoever the people are who are after you clearly have a power base in New York so staying anywhere near the city did not seem prudent, the two decoy safe houses are in the state of New York and for added security only myself and my team of two know exactly where we have taken you." Sorrenson answered and he seemed to be becoming annoyed with the writer.

"That seems a little over kill, Did you really have to take us completely off the map?" Martha piped in, the actress was completely out of her element in this location, she had never liked farms or the country and she always needed work in order to be happy and actresses find work in the city, not in back woods egg producing country.

"Also what are we supposed to do in emergencies?" Castle interrupted and he was clearly losing patience with Sorrenson.

"I will be coming to that in a minute. As for why I brought you so far out here, I am not taking any chances." Sorrenson stated firmly, he knew better then to get drawn into a debate with irate citizens but there was something about Castle that just brought out the worst in him. Maybe it was the fact that when they first met they were both competing over Kate, he was not sure all he knew was that he had a habit of acting like a child around the writer and he would have to watch out for that. He took a breath and got a hold of himself and then continued as if he was speaking with any other family who he was trying to protect, and not a family who seemed to know how to push all of his buttons. "You all have the same first names as you do now but your last names have been changed. You are a family from Boston who has come down here to get away from the noise of the city while Rick, who is a banker, recovers from getting hit by a bus a month ago. Your last names are Pinkerton." Sorrenson said explaining the cover, no one seemed to be impressed except strangely enough Castle.

Castle for the first time since he had met the man found himself feeling something other then annoyance and hate towards Sorrenson. He was mad at himself for feeling this but at that moment he was kind of impressed, all the precautions he had taken were straight out of one of his books and he had to admit he liked the name that the special agent had chosen, maybe there was more to his rival than met the eye. "Like the detectives who used to guard the President before there was a secret service." He piped in with a grin.

"Exactly." Sorrenson stated and he was about to go on when he was interrupted by Kate.

"Excuse me but Rick and I are married?" The detective asked, clearly flustered by this revelation.

"Yes, you will find wedding bands in your bedroom which is the only one on the ground floor." Sorrenson explained as if it were nothing.

"You put us in the same room?!" Kate asked her face showing a mixture of anger and shock.

"Yes, or course. I assumed that would not be a problem." Sorrenson answered and Beckett wanted to punch him at that moment but the feeling didn't last long because Castle moved up beside her and spoke, and he seemed to have let the jackass half of himself out.

"No, that will not be a problem." He said easily and Beckett wanted to punch the smug grin right off of his face but she felt like she was trapped. Right now Sorrenson was not making a move on her because he clearly thought she and Castle had been together for a while, if she objected then she would give the impression that something was wrong with the relationship and he would see it as an invitation to make a play for her and she didn't want to deal with that at the moment so instead she just decided to grin and bear it for the moment, but Castle had better not expect her to change anywhere but the bathroom, with the door shut and locked. She decided that she would have words, angry words with Castle once they were out of earshot of Sorrenson.

"No, it's not a problem. I am just used to going back to my own place at the end of the day." She explained and did her best to act like the situation was not bothering her, it clearly wasn't bothering Castle and that was yet another reason she wanted nothing more then to slap him at that moment but she kept herself under control. A thought then crossed her mind and she spoke up. "Wait a second, what is my father's last name?" She asked looking at the special agent who was quickly becoming a thorn in her side.

"His last name is Miller, that is a name no one will pay much attention to around here." Sorrenson explained and damn him he was acting like everything was normal and he hadn't just put Kate in a very awkward situation.

"What about security, I don't see any around here?" Beckett's question came out a little harsh, she would clearly like nothing better at that moment then to catch the FBI special agent off of his game, alas her hopes were dashed a second later.

"My men and I will be staying the shed closest to the house, it is set up to monitor security for the entire property." Sorrenson explained. "There is a security system that has the pass code 9283, which you will need to use when you exit and enter the house. There are two panic rooms you can enter with that code, one is in the first floor master bedroom, the other is on the second floor inside the room where we have placed Mrs. Rodgers."

"Are we stuck at this house for the whole time we are here?" Alexis asked even a blind man could tell that idea did not appeal to the social teenage girl one bit.

"No, of course not. That would draw attention to you, you do have neighbors even if you can't see them at the moment." Sorrenson explained with a chuckle as he tried to lighten the mood, this drew a sigh of relief from everyone one there, it seemed none of them were overly fond of their new home. Sorrenson then continued. "There is a car and a minivan in the garage." Sorrenson then pointed to the attached garage that had both of it's large doors closed at the moment. "The minivan is set up to handle Mister Castle's wheelchair and you are free to use either car to visit the surrounding towns. However please tell myself or one of the other agents before you go."

"What happens if we get into trouble away from the house?" Castle asked, he was no longer warming to the special agent, he was in fact sick to death of being spoken to like a child.

Sorrenson either didn't pick up on this or chose to ignore it because he answered the question calmly and without a hint of emotion. "The emergency call buttons on the cellphones we gave you all connect you to both the FBI and the local police department and activate a GPS tracking system on your phones. It's shouldn't take you more then ten minutes to get help in the event of an emergency."

"It seems like you have thought of everything." Castle responded and he really wished he could find some way to one up the smug bastard at that moment and if they had had a case he knew he would be able to do it but sadly he was deprived of that for the moment so he would just have to let his rage simmer quietly.

"Well I hope so." Sorrenson said and then he added. "Any more questions?" Everyone shook their heads no, so Sorrenson began walking towards the house. "Alright then your bags are in your rooms, so let's get you all settled in." He said brightly, suddenly acting like a counselor leading children at camp. Castle wanted nothing better then to share his frustration with this man with Beckett but he could see that she was just as mad at him as she was at the FBI special agent so he would have to deal with this alone. As they entered the house Castle braced himself for the storm that he knew was coming his way once he and Beckett were alone. One thing was for sure their first night as a married couple was not going to go the way he had always hoped.

**It may seem a little self indulgent to set this part of the story in delaware and that is because it is. Still there is a reason for it, a selfish one I will admit but it is a reason. I am sick of being so vague in the way I describe things in this story but the fact of the matter is I have only been to New York once on a day trip and I can't make heads or tails or a map of New York, I know nothing about the hospitals, and I can't even find any information online on where the 12th precinct is supposed to be or where Montgomery's funeral was or anything like that, so I am taking this chance to write about what I know. Don't worry we will be heading back to New York in a couple of chapters to check in on Ryan and Esposito and the story will be moving forward soon I am just needed to spend a few chapters setting up the locations for the rest of the story and where the character's heads are at. I will try to have some fun doing it but I am sorry if the story feels like it has stalled for the moment, I just don't know any other way to get things set up the way I want. Sorry this chapter is so short,the next one will have good scene for Kate,Rick, and Alexis.**

**As always you guys are the best and thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Once again a big thank you goes out to Caskettfan5 for helping me edit this chapter.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

The group entered the house via the front door which led to a small passage way with large rough wooden hangers for hats and coats on the wall and this in turn led to the kitchen via a door on the left hand side. Once they turned the corner they found themselves in the large open kitchen slash dining room area. To the right was the kitchen with all the normal things such as stove,oven, counters, sink, dishwasher, cabinets, and frig. It was all done in an early nineties style. To the left of the door was a medium sized pantry that held bread, breakfast cereals, and canned foods. The kitchen was a large open area clearly built with the idea that someone in a wheelchair would be using it because it was easily big enough for Castle to move his chair around in and most of the useful things where in floor level cabinets, the only thing he couldn't reach was the top of the stove and this caused him to heave a depressed sigh,cooking was one of the things he enjoyed doing to relieve stress and now he was being deprived of it. Everything was either on the right hand side of the kitchen going in or on the outward facing side. There were large windows everywhere that if the sun were shining would have given the whole place a bright and cheerful look. On the left hand side of the kitchen was a normal sized island with four wooden stools on the side facing the kitchen.

Leaving the kitchen they found that it opened up into a dining area with a decent sized oval wooden table with eight wooden chairs around it. To the right of the head of the table was a large sliding door that led out to the porch. To the left of the end of the table was a small hallway that ran between the pantry and the large wooden stairs that led up to the second floor, to his relief Castle discovered that the stairs were equipped with a motorized wheelchair lift. The small hall led straight onto the screened in porch which seemed to also serve as a living room. It had a all the normal furniture including two large comfy looking sofas and four reclining chairs all facing a big screen CRT TV that was facing away from the porch screen, the TV was hooked up to a converter box that in turn was hooked up to an antenna that was on a large metal tower in the back yard. There was also a surround sound system and dvd player as well as several padded deck chairs facing the porch screen and looking out on the yard and pool area. There were two large sliding doors in this room. One on the right hand side that opened up to a wheelchair ramp that lead down into the yard and another at the end of the room that opened up onto the pool.

Leaving this room and reentering the house proper they found that the small hall lead behind the stairs and to a decent sized office that had a computer desk, a rather old computer with a CRT monitor, and a shelf in the back with some reference books and computer software on it. This room had a soft blue carpet in it unlike the rest of the rooms which so far had been off white tile or solid stained wood. Castle took a look at the computer and discovered several things that made his heart sink. One it was hooked up to a dial up modem so most of his favorite websites would be off limits. Two it was not hooked up to a network of any kind. Three it was an old windows XP machine. Four it had a single core one point two GHz processor. So it would be slow and completely out of date and not much good for anything other then the most simple of websites. This earned the room another depressed sigh from Castle. Still he guessed it would do well enough for writing, but that was about it.

Finding nothing else of interest there other then a small closet full of household cleaning supplies directly under the stairs the group returned to the dining area. To the left of it was a small reading area with a open path through it big enough for Castle's wheelchair to move through. There were two walls on the far side that were made up of bookshelves that were covered with books ranging from the classics to Lee Child, much to his chagrin Castle didn't find a single Richard Castle book on the shelf. There was a wooden coffee table with a marble top in the middle of the room and the side facing the stairs was taken up be a large brown couch with fluffy cushions and the side facing the dining area featured two more recliners.

The group then turned towards the stairs and found that the house closed up a little and a hallway ran past the stairs and ended in front of a large solid oak door that they all guessed was the door to the master bedroom, on either side of the hall were several doors. One on the right hand side was a decent sized bath room, like the kitchen it had off white tiles on the floor and light blue tiles on the walls, it featured a bathtub slash shower and it was the first room they had found that didn't seem to be set up with a wheelchair in mind. Castle assumed this meant that is must be there to serve guests and not the home owners. To the left was one door that led to a staircase that went down to the basement, this also featured a wheelchair lift. Farther down the hall and to the right was a larger then normal wooden sliding door that at first looked like it led to a closest but when they opened it they found that it instead opened up to reveal a washer and dryer with a metal shelf above them that contained all the products needed to do laundry. Castle sighed again, he would have to get used to doing laundry again, he had not done that since Alexis was much younger, normally the cleaning lady took care of that but there was no cleaning lady here. At least both the washer and drier were front loading so he wouldn't have any trouble using them.

The group then continued on into the master bedroom. They opened the heavy oak door and stepped inside. The room had a light blue carpet and the walls were painted a bright white. It was a good sized room and in front of the door was a large comfortable looking king sized bed that had a wooden head board and was made up with lots of big fluffy pillows, sheets, and a comforter that featured a pink floral partner on it against a white background. Castle ignore the somewhat angry looks Beckett was shooting him and continued to explore the room. To the left of the door was a large walk in closet and at the back of this closet was a key pad and a metal door that led to the downstairs panic room. leaving the closet and going back into the bedroom they then found that to the right of the bedroom door there was a large wooden bureau that had a mirror on top of it. Also on top was a twenty inch CRT TV and a dvd player along with a small brown jewelery box. Beyond that was a door that led into a bathroom. This bathroom was large and clearly made with a wheelchair in mind. Not only was everything including the sinks right where Castle could reach it but there were metal hand rails everywhere to help someone get out of and into a wheelchair. There was a separate shower and bathtub and the large bathtub featured jets that could shoot out hot water that Castle guessed would feel very good on his sore muscles after a long day. The tub was the first thing in the house that earned a smile from Beckett, she could not wait to break it in.

With the exploration of the downstairs done the silent group turned and headed out of the bedroom all feeling a little depressed over their living conditions, that is when they ran into a bright and cheerful young woman who they didn't know. She stood about five feet three inches tall, had long blonde hair, sparkling blue eye, and wore a short sleeved bright green shirt with tan slacks. She flashed them all a bright and cheerful smile and she seemed to spend a couple of extra seconds looking at Castle. She had not said a word yet and already Beckett didn't like her one bit.

"Hi, I'm Kelly. I work for the FBI and will be your live in nurse and physical therapist until Mister Castle gets used to his new condition and you all get used to helping him with the things he needs help with." She said brightly, introducing herself and then she looked down at Castle an added. "I promise there will not be many of those by the time I am done with you." It may have been meant to reassure Castle but it was way too flirty for Beckett's taste, now her dislike for this woman was about to turn to hate. She had no idea what this woman was thinking or how she got a job with the FBI, she looked a few years younger then Beckett and she came off as a kid who wasn't old enough to drive, let alone offer medical care and what kind of girl flirted with a man who was so much older then herself. Beckett ignored the fact that she was in a relationship with Castle who was ten years her senior and she had a romantic relationship with her training officer who was almost twenty years older then her. She was mad and she wasn't about to let logic get in in the way of her fuming!

"Hi Kelly, glad you could make it on such short notice." Sorrenson said stepping forward and shaking her hand.

"Yeah thanks a lot in advance." Castle said rolling forward and extending his right hand while putting on his most charming smile. "I am sure I will be a handful over the next few weeks."

"Oh I am sure I can handle anything you can dish out Mister Castle." Kelly said taking his hand and smiling down at him.

"Please, call me Rick." Castle said and the smile was not leaving his face.

"Okay, Rick." Kelly said trying it out and that was it for Beckett, this child was not about to make a move on her man! This was just too much. After everything that had happened today she had been pushed to her limit but she couldn't think of anything to do that would not make things worse so without saying a word and just barely keeping herself under control she turned and stormed off in the direction of the bedroom she was being forced to share with Castle.

This resulted in shocked looks from everyone except Martha and Alexis, they seemed to be the only ones who understood what was going on. After watching Beckett retreat down the hall Castle turned back around and returned his attention to the young attractive woman standing in front of him. "It's been a long day and she could use some sleep." He explained in an apologetic tone.

"I understand, the last few days have to have been hard on all of you. I bet you could all use a good night's sleep." Kelly said losing none of her cheerfulness.

"You can say that again." Martha said dramatically and then she turned to Alexis. "Come on let's go check out our rooms." She said to the teenage girl, she could tell that she and Alexis were not needed for what was coming next.

"Okay, goodnight dad." Alexis said bending down to kiss her father on the cheek.

"Goodnight pumpkin." Castle said and then Martha and Alexis turned and headed up the stairs.

"I had better go check on security." Sorrenson said excusing himself and heading back through the kitchen and out of the house leaving Castle and Kelly alone in the hall.

"Well what do you say we get you changed and into bed?" Kelly asked in her usual cheerful tone.

"That's sounds great but I have to warn you I haven't let anyone help me with this stuff since I was four." Castle said with a grin, in truth he was not looking forward to this one bit but there was no way around it so he didn't see any point in taking out his frustrations on this nice young girl. Kelly and Rick then turned down the hall and made their way to the master bedroom.

When Kelly and Castle entered the room they were met by the sight of Beckett sitting silently on the bed wearing a T-Shirt and shorts pointedly reading a James Paterson hardback she had found on the bookshelf, she didn't even look up when they entered and the only light on in the room was the small reading lamp that was on Beckett's bedside table. Beckett didn't even react when Kelly switched on the overhead light that was part of the large ceiling fan above the bed. Normally Castle would have at least picked up on this but at the moment the man who had no problem with riding police horses naked and going to bed with woman whose names he didn't know was for some reason very nervous about going into the bathroom and getting naked in front of this woman and he was not sure why. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she was going to have to help him up onto the toilet, he didn't know, all he did know for sure was that he just wanted to get it over with as soon as he could. At last Kelly found a pair of flannel pajamas in one of Castle's suitcases and they made their way into the bathroom closing the door behind them.

"Don't be nervous, Mister Castle. You don't have anything thing that I haven't seen a hundred times before." Kelly said trying to calm the writer as she leaned forward and helped Castle remove his shirt, she then moved on to the slow process of taking off his shoes, socks, slacks, and underwear.

"Yeah I know, it's just odd." Castle said a moment later. He was trying his best to help but since he couldn't move his legs there was nothing much he could do other then use his arms to lift himself up a few inches off of the chair when Kelly needed him to.

"Besides I don't think you have anything to be nervous about." Kelly said with a grin as she started to unbuckle Castle's pants.

"Well that is always good to hear." Castle said forcing on his most charming grin, he needed to get his mind off of the fact that this attractive girl was about to help him onto the toilet so he said the first thing that popped into his head. "So how did you become a physical therapist working for the FBI?" Castle asked as he lifted himself up so she could remove his pants and boxers.

"It's not that interesting a story." Kelly said with a bit of a giggle. "You would be surprised how many agents or people in witness protection need a good physical therapist that they can trust and I have a cousin who is an agent for the FBI so here I am." She chirped and then added quickly. "I didn't just get this job because of my connections, I had to pass all the tests and I am very good at my job, I hope you can trust me."

"If I can't it's a little late now." Castle said with a nervous laugh, By now he was naked and Kelly was helping him onto the toilet.

"You have got a point there." Kelly said laughing.

In the next next room Beckett glared at the bathroom door. If she were Carrie the whole house would have been up in flames at that point. They were laughing, how dare they! Castle was getting along with this bimbo better then he was getting along with her at the moment. Then again maybe she had been stupid to think she could change him, after all blonde bimbos had always been his type, what made her think that would change? Here he was snapping at her and yet he was getting on with the barely legal bimbo like a house on fire, maybe she really wasn't his type. Oh and then another awful thought just crossed her mind, this girl was getting to see the man who was supposed to be hers naked before she did, when Castle had already seen her naked, Yes she knew he had looked the night her apartment blew up she wasn't stupid, how was this anywhere close to fair?! Then another horrid thought crossed Beckett's mind, maybe he didn't like what he saw that night. She knew most men thought she was hot but if for some reason Castle didn't think she measured up to all the hundreds of other woman he had been with what could she do about it? Then again there was more to their relationship then just looks, right? As she listened to the happy voices and laughter coming from the bathroom Beckett really had to wonder if that was true. This whole thing had turned into one giant mess and instead of giving her a relief from all the stressful events of her life like she hoped it would this relationship was now her biggest source of stress and she wasn't sure she could handle it. Maybe it wasn't too late to call the whole thing off and have Sorrenson move herself and her father to another safe house, hopefully on the other side of the country. She could bear one night in bed with Castle under the current conditions but she knew she would have a breakdown if she had to spend more then that. She would have to talk to Will in the morning about it. Come to think of it Will didn't have a ring on his finger and he was still a good looking guy, maybe before she left it would be a good idea to give Castle a taste of his own medicine. Now there was a plan, she would show this ungrateful playboy just what he was missing out on, that would teach him better then to play games with her heart! That was a plan she could pull off and she liked it.

It was as she was just coming up with this plan that the bathroom door opened and Beckett shoved her face back into the Patterson book. Beckett was determined not to give this girl the satisfaction of seeing just how upset she had made her so she just kept reading her book and didn't react when Castle entered the room followed by yet another in his long line of bimbos, she didn't react when the girl who she wasn't sure was old enough to drive helped him into bed, she didn't even react as the girl offered Castle a flirty "Good night", and she sure as hell refused to react when the idiot who was in the bed beside her offered her a far less flirty good night. She wasn't going to let him see that he had rattled her, she had a far better way of dealing with this problem, tomorrow she would move on. Will wasn't that big of a jerk and she was sure he wouldn't cheat on her and she knew his interest was real. She would score a one two punch, giving a man who had waited for her what he had waited for and she would show Castle everything he had lost, it was a perfect plan. There was just one problem, it broke her heart that it had come to this but she wasn't about to let Castle see her cry, she wouldn't give him that kind of power over her ever again.

That was when he finally said something and it was the dumbest thing she had ever heard in her life. "Kate, is everything alright?" She refused to answer a question that stupid. There was no way she was going to respond to that, she just buried her face father in the book. "Kate if something is wrong I don't know what it is. I need to know. I want us to work, please tell me." He pleaded, that is when Beckett finally broke he had taken a bullet for her and maybe he was just that stupid so she would explain it to him, still her response was far from kind when it left her lips.

"Why would anything be wrong?" She asked harshly. "I am here in your bed where you want me, we are married without having to date or you having to go to the trouble of proposing, and you have a bimbo who is just out of high school on the side, what could be wrong? Everything is perfect!" Beckett spat out throwing the book in her lap and turning to look at a shocked Castle who was only now starting to put the pieces together.

"Wow." Was all Castle could say after taking in a breath and looking away from the woman in his bed.

"Wow, that is all you can say?!" Beckett gasped in disbelief.

"I'm sorry I didn't know I was hurting you." Castle said as he looked over at Beckett with sad eyes but she was far too mad to let this gesture soften her. "What issue do you want to deal with first?" He asked a moment later.

"How about the fact that you think you can speak for me when it comes to where I sleep when we haven't even been on one real date yet!" Beckett explained unable to believe that this man who had always been able to read her so well just didn't get it. Were they really this broken?

"Oh, I'm sorry but please let me explain." Castle said quickly and then he took a breath, Kate didn't say anything she just gazed at him with a stern look, a moment latter Castle continued. "Look I know I was out of line there and I am sorry." This seemed to soften Beckett's gaze a little but she still didn't say anything so he continued. "It's just I could tell you didn't want Sorrenson to see that our relationship was new so I stepped in and tried to help. I know I screwed things up big time and I am sorry. I think I jumped in so fast because I was relieved that I would know where you were at night." He admitted quietly as if it was a source of great shame.

"Do you really think I would cheat on you with Will?!" Beckett asked shocked.

"Well he does have a pair of working legs and doesn't need help going to the bathroom so I wouldn't blame you." Castle explained as if it were the most natural logic in the world.

"I thought we were done with this nonsense!" Beckett huffed frustratedly. "It doesn't matter to me if you can walk or if you need help doing a few things."

"Well it's one thing to talk about it in the abstract it's another thing completely when it is part of your daily life and there is a good looking FBI special agent with two good legs standing right there and today has really brought home how useless I am." Castle said looking away from Beckett.

Beckett then reached over and grabbed his head with both hands forcing him to look at her and she spoke forcefully. "Look I am only going to say this once more so please get it through your thick head, I am not interested in Will one bit and it doesn't mater to me if you ever walk again. Do you get it this time?!"

"Got it." Castle replied and he had to hold back the tears.

"Okay now that is settled can you explain to me why you are so happy with this fake marriage when we haven't even been on a date yet?" Beckett asked and she still sounded somewhat mad but she was at least willing to hear Castle out this time.

"Maybe because I think of us as having been dating for almost three years, so I guess it doesn't seem like that big of a jump to me." He explained carefully.

"How have we been dating?" Beckett asked shocked.

"Oh come on we were flirting from day one." Castle said now being the one not believing what he was hearing.

"You flirt with everyone." Beckett shot back.

"You flirted back."

"Okay, but that doesn't mean we were dating, what else?" Beckett asked and she had a sinking feeling she had somehow been put on the defensive when she was supposed to be the one who was angry.

"We have meals, a lot of meals together."

"I eat meals with Ryan and Esposito." Beckett replied still not impressed.

"At your home?!" Castle pointed out and then he added before Beckett could speak. "We have been to movies together, you shared a movie with me that you loved."

"I just couldn't believe a geek like you hadn't seen Forbidden Planet before, and I am pretty sure you lied just to get a date with me without asking." Beckett retorted.

"Okay, fair point but we have lived under the same roof before." Castle replied unwilling to lose the argument.

"Montgomery ordered me to!" Kate objected.

"Still you could have refused and filed a complaint with HR." Castle pointed out then he added more gently. "Also we both get mad when we see each other dating other people."

"Really?" Was all Beckett could say as she shot Castle a look as she tried to deny what she knew in her heart was true.

"Oh now I know you are playing dumb. You have to have noticed how I acted whenever you had a date with someone else and don't think I didn't notice when you started to grow out your hair so it would look like bachelorette number three from last year's list, and you started wearing it down the same day I told you I had gotten a date with her, and don't pretend you didn't notice Demming and me trying to one up each other for weeks whenever you were around!"

"I didn't!" Beckett gasped out but the fact that her cheeks were turning red told Castle that she knew it was true, she was just hoping never to get called out on it. Castle knew better then to say any more and after taking a moment to regain her composure Beckett spoke. "This still doesn't explain why you seem so eager to jump into marriage."

"Maybe because that is where I see us going, even if it takes us a while to get there." Castle said softly.

"Did you ever consider that maybe that isn't what I want?" Beckett asked avoiding Castle's gaze.

"No, I guess I didn't." Castle answered truthfully and hurt was showing all over his face.

"Look I have never been a kids type person, I don't really like babies, I have never wanted to be a house wife, and I have never given a second thought to my wedding." Beckett explained desperately, hoping against hope that everything would be alright after this admission.

"I guess that is where I assumed we were headed after you said you loved me." Castle said as he looked over at Beckett sadly.

"I do love you but you have already been married twice and I don't want to be ex wife number three!" Beckett tried to explain, she really couldn't stand this and then she added. "Plus if the house wife with two kids is what you need to be happy then I am afraid that isn't me."

"No, that's not it!" Castle said shaking his head. "You are it for me and you make me happy, anything else would just be a bonus I would only want to do if you wanted it."

"Okay." Beckett said after giving it a moment's thought.

"Okay, so we are good?" Castle asked.

"Yes, we are good." Beckett said with a small smile and then added sternly. "As long as you stop flirting with that girl."

Castle then facepalmed. "Look Kate I am really sorry. I didn't even know I was doing it. I tend to flirt when I get nervous around woman and I was very nervous with Kelly tonight because she was going to be stripping me naked. I never wanted you to get hurt or feel unloved. You are the only woman I want, really." He explained and his expression told Beckett he was truly sorry.

"What I don't get is why you were nervous, I mean you have been naked with so many woman and in public before and you never cared." Beckett said after giving Castle's words a little thought.

"Yes but all of those times it was on my terms, here I wasn't in control even a little bit. I am completely helpless, like a baby now and I am just having a hard time dealing with that." Castle explained with shame all over his face.

"Oh." Beckett said suddenly feeling stupid, of course he would feel that way and she should have remembered that he flirted when he got nervous, suddenly she felt really really guilty. Here was this man who loved her and who's whole life had been turned upside down by her and she was giving him a hard time because he was not in complete control of his reaction to the situation one hundred percent of the time. Suddenly she felt like a queen bitch, she started to cry quietly. "I am so sorry Castle, here you are your whole life ruined and I can't give you one bit of support, I am so so sorry." She sobbed out.

Castle reached for her face and began wiping her tears away. "Hey, we both screwed up I see that now." He said firmly and before Beckett could object he continued. "It's true I should have talked to you about all these things instead of hiding from you but I promise I will not bottle things up, if I think something about you I will ask you about it before deciding to do something that will effect both of us, okay?"

"I will do the same." Beckett said with a sniff as she stopped crying. "You know there is one thing that I am still upset about." Beckett said a moment later.

"Really, what is that?" Castle asked with fear showing in his voice.

"It's that Kelly saw you naked before I did." Beckett said with a teasing smile.

"Oh, well we can fix that." Castle said realizing what Beckett was getting at and finally flirting with her for the first time that evening.

"Yes we can." Beckett agreed as she moved over and straddled Castle's waist. "After all the doctor did clear you to return to active duty." Beckett said as she reached down and began unbuttoning Castle's shirt.

"And far be it from me to neglect my duty." Castle replied drawing in a breath as he reached up and pulled the t-shirt Beckett was wearing up over her head and exposing her chest to him for the first time that didn't involve the room burning around them.

"Shut up and kiss me Castle!" Beckett demanded as she leaned down and took Castle's lips with her own. Now she was one hundred percent sure things would work out between them.

Castle smiled to himself, suddenly their first night as a married couple was going exactly the way he had always imagined it.

**Well I hope this chapter was enough of a recovery to make up for the last couple. I really hope you liked this one as it was the most fun for me to write.**

**Oh and first person to spot the Citizen Kane reference in this chapter and call it out in either a review or a PM will get a mention in the notes for the next chapter:)**

A**s always you guys are the best and the feedback I have been getting is amazing. Thank you so much for reading,reviewing,following, and favoriting.**

**Oh and I know some random words are missing in this chapter and I wrote them but for some reason the site decided to censor them when I upload the chapter. I am working trying to fix it, sorry about this. Thanks for bearing with me.**

**Thanks go out to Caskettfan5 for editing this chapter.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Kate Beckett was exhausted but it was the good kind of exhaustion. It was the kind that allows one to fully relax, it was the kind that makes your every muscle and bone feel like it's turning to jelly and melting into the soft mattress of the bed, it was the kind that makes you happy to fall asleep and make you feel as if the idea of ever waking up is a bad one and makes you forget that doing anything other then sleeping in an option. In other words at that moment all of her cares were forgotten and she was basking in the sweet release of having nothing to do and had completely given in to the need to sleep. She was only about maybe ten percent awake, if that. Consciousness seemed a vague and far off concept to her at that moment. It was like some far off star in the galaxy, it was something she was aware existed but she didn't really know anything about it and it was of little interest to her. She could happily never think of it or have anything to do with it for the rest of her life. She stirred a little but dismissed the idea of doing more and was about to head back into the peacefulness and sweet release of sleep when she thought she felt something shaking her arm.

At first she wasn't sure what was happening, didn't want it to be happening. She tried to convince herself that it was nothing, most likely a waking dream, after all who would be doing this to her? No one who knew her would be stupid enough to wake her from a good sleep and besides at a time like this who in the world would want to do anything but sleep? No one would do either of those things so it must be all in her head. She cursed her brain for trying to trick her and turned over on her side, determined to ignore her evil mind and lose herself in the fog of sleep once again.

Only it didn't go away, it simply moved and began to touch her bare back, right on the shoulder blade and this time it was joined by a voice. Beckett slowly began to put pieces together and decided at last that it couldn't all be in her head and then she was forced to conclude that she must be being tormented by one of the most evil people who ever lived. Who other then a complete monster would being doing something like this? A minute later she was awake enough to realize that she would not get back to sleep so she slowly opened her eyes. She blinked several times and tried to get used to the darkness, she had no idea what time it was but whenever it was it was still early since there was not a hint of sunlight coming in through the opened curtain and windows she could just barely make out. She rolled over to try and check the time but was puzzled when she couldn't see her digital clock slash radio, that was when she remembered that she was not in her bedroom and the rest of the pieces fell into place. The voice and the hand that was nudging her back must belong to Castle. Maybe she should call him Rick now? A smile crept over her lips as she was overcome with the memories of the events of the previous night, but she wasn't overwhelmed. In fact she was very happy with how events had played out and she hoped it would do much to set Rick's mind at ease. That just didn't feel right, His exes and bimbos called him Rick, to her he would always be Castle, that is what felt right. To others it may have seemed cold and distant after what they had done and how far they had come but to her it was sweet and stood in for every possible pet name or term of endearment. So what if no one else understood, they understood and that was enough, she wasn't trying to impress anyone! All that mattered was what worked for them.

Speaking of endearment, the man laying on the bed behind her was not doing much to endear himself to her at that moment. She may have loved him and she may never leave him but that didn't mean she couldn't get angry or at least very annoyed with him, and she was at that moment. She hoped he wasn't just waking her to have another go just because he was awake and bored, if that was the case there would not be a repeat of last night for a long time. Still it was clear she wasn't going to get any sleep until she paid attention to him so with a frustrated huff she turned over and opened her eyes fully and looked at him.

He was laying on his back, of course since he could not toss and turn but his head was turned to his right and he was looking at her. He was covered by the same light sheet he was and like her he had not put any clothes back on after last night's "activities". He was looking just as tired as she was so she had no idea what had come over him that had made him decide to wake her up at that hour. That that moment all she could think of was more sleep and the fact that this man had decided to keep her from getting it for some reason. Still the only way to find out what was going on was to ask so that is what she did.

"Castle, what time is it?" She asked squinting at him.

"Oh..it's...four thirty." Castle replied nervously, taking a second to look at the clock slash radio that was on his bedside table.

"And what made you decide that waking me up at this hour when we don't have a case was a good idea?" Beckett demanded with a yawn, sounding more annoyed then she really was. She decided it wasn't a good idea to let him think he would get away with this sort of thing in future. The future, for the first time in her adult life she saw a future ahead that didn't involve murder and she liked the idea and it was all because of the man laying beside her. So no, she wasn't really that annoyed with him, but she decided it was best not to tell him that. She knew she would be tired and cranky today because of this and she figured it was better to take it out on the man responsible rather then anyone else.

"Sorry, it's just I think you should go get Kelly." Castle answered apologetically.

He looked at least a little sorry but Beckett still decided to tease him, it would serve him right for waking her up. "Castle I know what you have in mind and it is not going to happen." she said firmly.

"Beckett as much as I would love to relive your wild college days, that isn't what I am talking about. Still I will bear in mind that that was the first place your mind went." Castle said with a sly, cocky smile. It was the type he used to flirt with bimbos and annoy her, it was also the type he used when he knew something about her he knew she didn't want him to know.

Crap! The plan had backfired. She was going to kill Madison, that had to be where Castle heard the story. Beckett thought to herself as she turned her head away and buried it in her pillow, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"Don't worry it doesn't change anything and this stays just between us." Castle said reaching over to pat her shoulder as his voice took on a sickening cocky tone of mock comfort and reassurance. Beckett put her hand over her closed eyes, she needed a comeback but at that moment she couldn't think of one. If she had been fully awake she never would have walked into this door, but she hadn't been and now she was paying the price. She didn't know who she was more mad at, Castle for waking her up, or Madison for talking to him about this in the first place. Still Castle's next words instantly drew her attention off of herself and back onto him and reminded her or how much things had changed between them. She had already seen his stuff but for some reason he sounded very nervous and embarrassed. "I need you to get Kelly because...I need...to...get..out of this..bed, or something is going to happen that has not happened since I was three." He explained and as Beckett turned over to look at him she saw that now it was his cheeks that were turning red. Maybe they were even now, still she was going to have to come up with a way to get back at him herself and not just let his bladder do it. He had known this for a year and not said a word. She wondered how many times he had thought about it and never asked for her version of the story. Yeah, she was going to have to get back at him somehow. Still that was not the thing that should be foremost on her mind, she realized. She still didn't know exactly how to help Castle into his wheelchair, and as much as she wanted to get back at him hurting him that way did seem like it would be going too far. Unless she wanted the bed soaked she needed to go get Kelly.

Beckett quickly rubbed the last of the sleep from her eyes and jumped out of the bed. She scrambled around searching the bed and the floor frantically, trying to find and put on her clothes.

"You know, I am normally the one who is dashing around trying to find stuff in the wee hours of the morning after a night like last night." Castle noted with a smirk.

Beckett narrowed her gaze and shot Castle a look that told him continuing with this train of thought was not a good idea. She knew he had a past but bringing it up at this moment was a very bad idea. "Look do you want me to go get Kelly or not?" Beckett asked as she pulled her shirt over her head.

"I think you had better." Castle replied and to anyone else it would seem like a simple mater of fact reply to the question but Beckett could tell he was still really embarrassed by the whole situation.

"Can you hold it long enough for me to help you get your boxers on?" Beckett asked taking pity on the man while not being completely sure he deserved it.

"Yes, thank you." Castle said letting out a breath. Beckett then picked up his boxers off of the floor next to the bed and pulled the sheet off if his body so she could help him. Beckett had never given much thought to just how much Castle's legs alone weighed but as she grunted with the effort of lifting the dead weight and pulling the boxers up she found it hard to think of anything else.

"I like it a lot better when you are taking them off." Castle said trying to lighten the mood, this caused the skin all over Beckett's body to flush bright red.

"Castle if you want me to go you can't say things like that." She said firmly while refusing to look him in the eyes.

"I am not sure I want you to go now." Castle said as he quirked an eyebrow and smiled down at Beckett but then a moment later he seemed to think better of it because he quickly added. "On second thought I really need you to go find Kelly, now."

This caused Beckett to leap off of the bed and head quickly for the door. "Okay, I'll be right back." She called out over her shoulder and then she was gone.

On the second floor of the house Beckett found four bedrooms and a small bathroom that seemed to be meant for guests like the one downstairs. She assumed that each bedroom must have it's own bathroom. All of the bedroom doors save one were closed, Peeping in Beckett saw that this room belonged to her arch rival, the much hated Kelly. Beckett guessed the door had been left open so Kelly could hear if someone called for her in the middle of the night. Looking back into the hall for a moment Beckett considered checking to see which room her father was in and making sure he was okay, despite how mad she still was with him at that moment she wanted nothing more than to be reassured that he could get though this. Still without knowing how long Castle could hold it she didn't dare do this, so with a sigh she reluctantly stepped into Kelly's room and made her way over to the bed.

Beckett woke the girl by shaking her and calmly explained the situation to her, Beckett just barely kept her temper in check, she really wanted to tell this girl off for the way she had acted the previous night but there was no time so she struggled to keep control of herself, she would have words with her later. To make matters worse Kelly seemed very cheerful and didn't seem to have any trouble waking up. What kind of freak is awake and cheerful at this hour? Beckett asked herself. A few minutes later the two women had made their way down to Castle and Beckett's bedroom, Beckett had been shooting glares at the girl every time she thought the young woman was not looking.

"Rise and shine Rick!" Kelly said as she made her way over to the bed.

"Good morning Kelly." Castle said politely and Beckett let out a satisfied sigh, noting that while Rick was being polite and even friendly he was not flirting. Beckett would have preferred that he tell the bimbo off but this was a huge improvement over last night.

"So Rick do you just want to use the bathroom or would you like to take a bath and get dressed?" Kelly asked as she and Beckett helped the man into his wheelchair.

"I guess I may as well bathe and get dressed." Castle replied and his tone said that while he was doing it because it seemed like the most logical thing to do he was not happy about it. Kelly was just turning to make her way over to Castle's suitcases but Beckett was already there picking out a set of clothes and his bathroom things.

"I am coming too." Beckett said firmly and Castle arched an eyebrow at this while Kelly shot her a questioning look. "The sooner I learn to help you the better." She explained looking at Castle but the smug look he shot her in return told her that he knew the real reason she was coming in, she was not about to let Kelly seem him naked again without her. Kelly seemed to lose her cheerfulness for a split second but then agreed with a forced smile.

The three people made their way into the bathroom and Castle got on the toilet. Castle noted that he seemed to be getting better at lifting himself using the handrails but it was still a struggle. "Don't worry, I am starting you on some weight training today so it should be easier once we build you up." Kelly said seeming to sense what he was thinking and that she added in a more playfully. "Not that I think you will need much." This caused Beckett to almost boil over with rage, she couldn't take this much longer but she need to work with this woman. Still she had to do something to stake her claim and make it clear Castle was never going to be on the market again.

"No, after last night I can assure you that he doesn't." Beckett said as she stepped between the Bimbo and her man while folding her arms across her chest and looking down at the girl, she didn't even care that she should be embarrassed because she had just let the cat out of the bag, she needed to make her point. Kelly didn't seem to know how to respond to this so she just took a step back but the she kept the smile on her face.

"Excuse me ladies, but would you mind giving me some privacy. I'll call you when I am done." Castle butted in, he was clearly uncomfortable with the whole situation.

"Of course." Beckett said quietly and then she shot Kelly another look and she and the young woman left the bathroom, closing the door behind them.

Once it was closed Beckett decided you couldn't wait another minute, she had to put this girl in her place. "Castle and I are together." She said as she fixed the girl with an angry stare. "What you are doing is a major breach of ethics, and if you don't knock it off I will report you." Kelly looked like she was going to object but Beckett wouldn't let her get a word in, instead she took a step closer and looked down her nose at the bimbo, dominating the space. "You seem to be good at your job but I will not stand for you harassing Castle like this, is that understood?"

"Yes." Kelly replied as she looked down at the floor and for the first time the smile seemed to leave her lips and if Beckett didn't know any better she would say it was replaced by shame. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to cause trouble." She said a moment later.

"Then what did you mean to do?" Beckett asked with a sarcastic tone as she rocked back on her heels, she was happy to finally have this girl on the defensive for a change.

"It's just I am always a little like this and then meeting such a famous man that I am a huge fan of, I guess I just wasn't thinking. I'm so sorry. It will not happen again." Kelly explained still not looking up at the older woman.

Beckett was still mad at the girl, but at the same time she started to soften after this confession. She could remember being this girl's age and being a bundle of nerves as she waited in line for hours just to have her book signed. She could remember how once she had made it to the table she had flirted, badly and giggled at everything he had said. Yes, Kate Beckett had at one moment in her life giggled like a schoolgirl. She also remembered how disappointed she had been in one of her heroes the first time she had brought him in for questioning, how much she had wanted to smack him across the face and never see him again. Now all of that seemed to have happened to another person in another life, it seemed to have no connection with the herself or the present. The hero worship had grown into so much more and if anyone had told her she would be in a real relationship with "the" Richard Castle years ago she would have laughed in their face but here they were, they had made it and the person she was and their relationship in the past felt completely alien to her and she didn't see any way to go back to it. So while she was still angry with Kelly she could at least admit to herself that she understood what it was like to be young and how a girl could get caught up in the romance of helping one of her idols who just happened to be a big strong man. She could understand and at least take a little pity on the girl now that she had staked her claim and made it clear she was never going anywhere.

"It's okay." Beckett said more gently as she looked down at the girl. "You made a mistake and as long as you don't repeat it no harm was done."

"Okay." Kelly said looked up at the detective. "Do you think we could start over and pretend last night didn't happen?" She asked hopefully.

"I think that's a good idea." Beckett said with a small smile, now willing to call a truce but she would still keep a close eye on the girl.

"Thank you." Kelly said as she extended her right hand and Beckett waited a moment but then grasped it and shook.

A moment later Castle called for them and they reentered the room. Bathing and dressing Castle took a long time and was very involved and Castle seemed to be humiliated and angry the whole time but he didn't say a word, he just sat quietly. He didn't want Beckett to think he was doubting her again so he didn't say a word and hoped she wouldn't noticed, but of course she did but she didn't say anything either. She wasn't sure what else there was to say, they would both have to get used to this new aspect of their relationship and hopefully time, the great healer of all wounds would make this feel normal and Castle wouldn't see himself as a problem for those around him, still until that time came Beckett knew she was going to have to deal with mood swings so there was no sense in making an issue out of them. She hoped that the therapist he was going to start seeing today would help that time come sooner rather then later, but no matter how long it took Beckett knew her days of running were over.

Castle's mood improved when he shaved himself and brushed his own teeth. Kelly and Beckett then helped him get dressed in slacks and a buttoned up shirt. The whole time Kelly was her normal happy self but there was no flirting, this pleased Beckett since it meant that maybe she could trust the girl. Finally after more then an hour the three of them exited the bath room, that was when it happened, from somewhere outside there were a couple of loud bangs, Castle was the first to react.

"Beckett, get down!" He shouted and when Beckett continued to stand in the middle of the room panic began to spread across Castle's face. "We are being shot at, get down!" He yelled again, but there was not another sound and Beckett walked up to one of the windows and looked out into the yard, she didn't see anything. This prompted Castle to come up behind her and yell again. "Are you crazy, Beckett?!" He demanded and Beckett turned and saw that his eyes were darting back and forth in a state of complete panic. She then placed her hands on either side of his face and bent down, forcing him to look at her.

"It's okay Rick. No one is out there, I don't know what that sound was but no one is shooting at us." Beckett said in a tone as if she were talking to a child who had just woken up from a nightmare. Castle's breathing calmed and the look of complete and utter fear mixed with panic slowly left his face. Then Kelly spoke up.

"It was most likely some locals hunting deer out of season in the woods, it sounded miles away." She explained calmly.

"Oh, sorry." Castle said as he looked down at his lap sounding very embarrassed.

"Kelly, could you give us a minute?" Beckett asked looking over at the younger woman.

"Sure." was all the girl said as she turned and exited the room. Beckett then sat down on the bed so she was eye level with Castle and when she spoke it was gently and without judgment.

"It's okay Castle, there is nothing to be ashamed of." Beckett said looking him in the eyes.

"That is easy for you to say, you are not the one who is jumping every time they hear a sound, you are not the one who is afraid of losing everything." There was something about the way he said the last part that told Beckett that he wasn't talking about his life when he said "everything."

"Will wasn't the only reason you jumped at the chance to share a bed with me, was it?" Beckett asked and again there was no judgment.

It took Castle a moment to answer and when he did he had a far off, lost look in his eyes. "Have you ever seen what happens when a sniper shoots someone in the head?" He asked, Beckett wasn't expecting this question but she shook her head no. "Well I have, when I was researching one of my books I found some footage of a bank robber who took hostages being taken out by a sniper." He explained slowly and then he took a breath before he continued. His voice was halting and sad and he was just barely holding back tears. "It's not like the movies or tv...it isn't clean...the head just explodes, pieces of brain and skull go everywhere,...teeth go all over the place if the head is hit in the right spot...in the end not even the person's family would know it is them" Castle then looked away and started to cry and then he continued softly. "Every time I close my eyes every time I sleep I am back at the funeral and I don't make it in time...every...time...I...see that..happening to...you. The only time I don't is when I can reach over and feel you sleeping next to me." He explained and then he looked up at Beckett and he broke and started crying like a baby.

Beckett couldn't think of anything else to do so she leaned forward and grabbed him in a hug. "It's okay, I am right here and I am not leaving." She muttered. Not knowing what else to say. She had no idea how long they were there but at last Castle stopped and pushed her away.

"Thank you, for understanding." He said looking up at her.

"Always." Beckett replied.

"I hope it will get better." Castle said a moment later, and his eyes were red but he was done crying and becoming himself again.

"It will." Beckett reassured him and then added. "The first time I had a gun pulled on me on the job I froze." She explained and this seemed to get Castle's interest and he perked up. She knew he would pay attention to this there was nothing he loved more then a story and peeling layers of the Beckett onion, she knew this wouldn't fix everything but she hoped it would help. "Seven out of ten trained cops do. I was then a wreck for weeks because I kept seeing how it could have gone wrong but the fear slowly faded and the next time I didn't freeze. What you are going through is normal and it will get better." She said firmly.

"Okay, thanks." Castle said with a grateful smile and then added. "I just hope I don't have to get shot again to be alright." This earned him an eye roll from Beckett. "Too soon?" He asked flashing his old cocky smile.

Beckett was about to say something when they both heard a loud crash coming from the upstairs. Beckett ran her hands through her hair and then sighed, she was hoping to get a shower before having to deal with this but luck was not on her side. ""Sounds like my dad's up, I'll have to go deal with him." Beckett explained sadly.

Castle nodded that he understood and then he spoke up. "If you need any help or just someone to talk to I am here, you don't have to face this alone this time." He said said looking up at her as she stood up. At first Beckett was tempted to lie and say that she didn't need his help, after all he had problems of his own but then she remembered the advice she had given Alexis just the day before and she decided that not only did she need his help but maybe it would be the best thing for him as well.

"Thanks that means a lot." Beckett said looking down at her writer and then she added to make it clear where she stood. "I will not shut myself down, we will talk later but right now I have to deal with this."

Castle again nodded that he understood and then spoke again. "Good luck."

"Thanks, I am going to need it." Beckett replied as she turned and headed out of the room. The sun was not even up yet and already she was having a very hard day, she hoped things would get better soon but she knew that they were going to get worse. She had a very hard job waiting for her upstairs and she just hoped she was up for it.

**Sorry it has been a week since I updated but before writing Castle dealing with his psychological issues and Jim dealing with his relapse I needed to do some more research. Sorry to leave you hanging for so long. Thanks for putting up with these delays.**

**Sorry this chapter didn't do much to advance the plot but the plot will move forward soon. The next chapter is all about Jim and Kate and then it is back to New York to see what Ryan and Esposito are up to.**

**Oh and as always you guys are the best, thank for reading and reviewing.**

**Oh and...OVER 100 PEOPLE ARE following THIS STORY...YEAH!**

**So glad so many people seemed be enjoying this, thanks for reading.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for helping me edit this chapter.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

Kate walked up the stairs with a great deal of trepidation, she didn't know what she was going to do once she got to the top. A big part of her just wanted to scream at her dad for doing this to her again, another part wondered what the point would be, after all he had chosen drink over her so would he even care? Was there even a relationship left to save at this point? She had to try right? She knew she would never forgive herself if she didn't try and deep down she knew if she hadn't have yelled at him this would not have happened. Still she needed her dad to start being a dad and not someone who she lived in fear of speaking to because she was afraid saying the wrong thing would push him off the deep end. Then again maybe that was a Beckett family trait, if she was being honest she would admit that she was just as guilty of running off and pushing people away as her father was. She had run away from him and when she thought about all the times that she had known just by looking at him Castle had wanted to tell her how he felt but had held back for fear of sending her running she was not proud of herself. She just was not sure she could handle doing this all over again, then again she did have Castle this time and that was something. The big question was did her dad want to get sober? She knew from all the years she supported him in AA that a person had to get sober for themselves not the people around them. If he was only getting sober for her they would just end up right back at this same place the next time something bad happened. She couldn't make this about herself, as hard it would be she had to put her own feelings aside and make the focus her father and not herself. She resolved to do this and as she reached the top of the stairs she took a breath and let her face go as neutral as she could make it. She had to keep her emotions in check, that was the only way this would work out.

The first room she tried turned out to be the one Alexis had settled in. The girl was still asleep so Kate quickly and quietly closed the door. There were two bedrooms on each end of the hall and Kate decided that Martha was most likely in the bedroom beside Alexis' so Kate decided to cross the hall and try the bedroom next to Kelly's. Her hunch turned out to be right, she saw several plain suitcases sitting in front of the bed, which was itself a mess, and the lamp that had sat on the bedside table lay on the floor surrounded by pieces of broken glass from the light bulb breaking, but there was no sign of her father.

Kate looked around the room but aside from the lamp being knocked over she could find no sign of her father. The room was much smaller then the master bedroom but it was put together in much the same style. Instead of a king sized bed there was a nice double bed and Kate could easily see being able to live in the room comfortably. It didn't take her long to search the room and when she was done she heard an all too familiar sound, it was the sound of her father emptying the contents of his stomach into the toilet in the small bathroom, at least she hoped he had made it to the toilet, she was in no mood to clean up a mess at that moment.

Kate quietly pushed the bathroom door open and thank goodness her dad had made it to the toilet, it didn't always work out that way. She wanted to cry and scream at the same time but instead she just stood in the doorway with her arms crossed watching the scene that was unfolding in front of her. Jim Beckett finished being sick and then slowly on shaky legs stood up and made his way other to the sink and began to wash his mouth out with water, the whole time he didn't look over at his daughter once. Then with his shoulders hunched and looking at the floor he turned and left the bathroom, he didn't say a word as he slowly walked past his daughter and slumped down on the foot of the bed.

"So was it worth it?" Kate demanded in a sharp tone as she quickly spun around to face her father, he did not respond or look up, he just placed his hands over his eyes as if the first rays of sunlight that were creeping in through the window were painful to him. Kate was angry but tried to keep her temper in check while still making her point but it was hard. "Is this you trying to punish me or are you just trying to kill yourself?" She asked and again he didn't look up. "If you are going to kill yourself then you can do it without me, I don't need this, I never needed it." Kate glared at her father as she took a couple of steps closer to the bed.

This got a reaction from Jim, he didn't look up but with shaking hands he began to rub his eyes,when he spoke a moment later it was in a harsh whisper that he never used unless he had been drinking. "You kill yourself your way, I'll kill myself mine. We both died the night your mother was stabbed, let's not pretend otherwise."

This put a fire in Kate and she stepped forward till she was standing right in front of her father, he was still looking down at his hands but she was too angry to care. "Don't you dare use mom as an excuse to kill yourself with drink, she wouldn't stand for this and I will not either!" He nostrils flared as she spoke and her face turned red.

"Why can't I?!" Jim demanded as he looked up at his daughter with blood shot eyes and he felt his pulse pounding in his ears. "It's what you are doing!"

"I am not!" Kate bellowed as she clenched her fists and her face turned red.

"Yes you are, At least I am enjoying my trip to the grave and it helps lessen the pain!" Jim retorted as he stood up off of the bed and toward over his daughter causing her to take a half step backwards.

"I am the one who has to take care of you every time you do this." Kate objected trying to regain control of the situation.

"I never asked you to take care of me!" Jim yelled and then he turned around so his back was facing Kate.

"But I'm your daughter." Kate pleaded as she struggled to hold back her tears.

"Exactly you are my daughter and you have no right to try and tell me how to live my life!" Jim responded without turning around to face Kate.

"Is that what this is about, some stupid caveman thing?" Kate demanded as she walked around to face her father and then added in a tone that reeked of disappointment. "I always thought you were better then that."

"I am only human, and I can only take so much." Jim said as he became quiet for the first time and he still refused to look at his daughter.

"You can't stay sober for me, if I have to be perfect for you to stop drinking then you may as well drink yourself to death right now, because I am broken and will never be the daughter you want." Kate said harshly and then she looked down at the floor.

"Is that what you really think?" Jim asked a moment later as he looked at his daughter with tears coming out of his bloodshot eyes.

"Well you are trying to punish me by killing yourself so what am I supposed to think." Kate said in a bitter tone, refusing to look her father in the eyes.

"Katie, I love you and I am proud of you." Jim said gently, still crying as he reached for his daughter's shoulder but she pulled back, unable to stand the thought of being touched by him.

"I think if you ever did love me that love died with mom." Kate said said accusingly as she looked at her father with a mixture of anger and sadness in her eyes.

"That's not true." Jim cried and he slumped to the floor and began crying into his hands.

Kate spent a moment watching him before she softened a little and sat down on the floor in front of him and place a hand carefully one his shoulder. "If it's not then why do you keep doing this to me?" She asked in desperation, and she felt her own mouth go dry and she was nearly crying herself.

"Because it's all too much!" Jim cried out without looking up, he was still unable to control his own tears and he felt a sense of nausea overcome him that had nothing to do with his drinking.

"What is too much, I have given up the case and we are in an FBI safe house. I am not going to die." Kate tried to explain to her father, she knew her father must remember their conversation from the day before or he would be demanding to know where they were and what had happened, so his continuing to blame her made no sense. Still maybe he was just looking for an excuse to continue to drink, it wouldn't be the first time it had happened.

"Everything, is too much." Jim replied in a broken voice full of shame. "It's all too much for me to handle without a drink."

This was too much for Kate, she reached out and placed her hand on his face and forced him to look at her, she then held out her wrist that she kept his watch on. "That is nonsense." She said sternly. "You can beat this, you did it before and this is the proof. I am not letting any alcohol into this house, so you can beat this like you did before. The only question is do you want to."

"It's not that simple." Jim pleaded and he was shaking now, but Kate would not let him look away from her, instead she fixed his eyes with a hard look, she wouldn't let him hide from himself or her. "That was before I knew." He ran a hand through his messy hair, all his shaking hand managed to do was make his hair even more messy. "They are going to keep coming for you and it is all my fault."

This caused a tightening in the pit of Kate's stomach, until now she had comforted herself with the knowledge that what he had said yesterday was just drunk talk but now it seemed there was more to it than that still she had to know the whole truth. "What do you mean, how is this your fault?" She asked, her voice shaking with fear.

Jim then stood up and turned away from his daughter, he walked to the other end of the room, putting as much distance between them as he could without leaving the room, yet he still refused to speak. "Haven't I earned the whole truth, don't you owe me at least that much?!" Kate demanded as angry tears streamed down her face and she walked over to her father.

"You will hate me if I tell you." Jim replied weakly without turning to face Kate.

"I am on the brink of hating you now and this is killing you, tell me!" Kate said as her face turned red and she reached over and grabbed her father's shoulders and forced him to face her.

"Okay, I will tell you." Jim said as he was turned and his voice was more broken than then Kate had ever heard it before. "Your mother is dead because I stopped her from getting help."

"What do you mean, you had no idea anything was going to happen to her." Kate objected but there was terror in her voice, she feared that there was more to the story than she thought.

"You don't understand, for weeks before hand we received threatening phone calls telling her to drop the case." Jim said looking at his daughter with guilt written all over his face, this caused Kate to take a step back and place her hand over her open mouth.

"Why didn't you do something?!" Kate demanded a moment later as rage and shock battled for control of her body.

"Because when you are defending killers you get calls like that all the time from family members of victims. She wanted to go to the police but I wouldn't let her, I told her it was nothing. I failed to protect her and she was murdered. It's all my fault." Jim explained, ringing his hands with a mixture of nervousness and guilt.

Kate turned away, she couldn't look at him at that moment. He was right if he had let her mother go to the police she would be alive right now. Kate began to cry, her father had let her whole life be ruined, he had destroyed their family. He deserved the self inflected punishment he was putting on himself. It was all his fault. Then suddenly she remembered something Alexis had said to her. The truth was she had no way of knowing what would have happened if her mother had gone to the police, she knew that cops didn't always deal effectively with death threats and after a week or so they would have stopped guarding her mother. She didn't know who these people were but she knew they would have been willing to wait. Nothing would have been changed, at any rate even if it was his fault she knew her mother would not blame her father so she couldn't let him blame himself. Her legacy had to be bigger then her death. Kate brought her tears under control and wiped her face with her left sleeve and then turned around to face her father. When she spoke it was with the calm firm voice of an officer laying down the law.

"You are wrong." She said and Jim looked up at her for a moment with tear stained eyes. "There is nothing you could have done. These people are powerful. This isn't your fault, the only people who are to blame are the bastards who killed mom." Kate echoed the words of the redheaded teenager she had talked to yesterday. Jim didn't look convinced so she continued. "Mom did what she did to help people and those cold blooded killers had no right to try and stop her and if you had gone to the police they would have protected her for maybe a week and these people would have just waited and attacked later. There was nothing you could have done to stop this and mom loved you and wouldn't want to see either of us killing ourselves over it."

Jim looked at his daughter with questioning eyes. "Why would you think this is your fault?" He asked.

"Because it was my idea that we go to dinner that night, so for years I told myself that she wouldn't have been where she was if she had not been coming to meet us." Kate explained and she wanted nothing more then to run away and hide but she refused to break eye contract with her father. "So you were right, I put up a wall and cut everyone off and tried to work myself to death. I was wrong and I am sorry."

"Oh, Katie." Jim said as he reached over and took his daughter in a hug which a second later she returned and they both cried quietly for several minutes and then Kate pulled a way.

"We both need to stop punishing ourselves, we need to remember how mom lived not how she died." Kate said with a sniff.

"You are right." Jim said a moment later. "Your mother was too good a woman for us to only let people remember her for the pain her death caused. Those monsters took her from us and we can't let them take her memory from us as well." He said firmly.

"Dad, I'll stop killing myself with work if you will stop doing the same with alcohol, is that a deal?" Kate asked softly.

"Deal." Jim said with a sad smile as he reached out and shook his daughter's right hand. "It will get better you know. I am so sorry I let you down."

"I'm sorry too, I should have listened to you." Kate admitted sadly.

"You know my problems are not going to be fixed overnight." Jim said as he fixed his daughter with a grave look.

"Neither are mine." Kate responded sadly and then added a moment later. "But I will not give up on you."

"And I will not give up on you, together we will get through this." Jim said firmly and then he hugged Kate again and this time there were no tears.

Kate pulled away and smiled at her father for the first time in days. "Good, now let's get you downstairs and get some water into you before your hangover gets too bad."

"Lead on, I can't get some water and some Advil in me soon enough." Jim said as he followed his daughter out of the bedroom. Things were far from perfect but at long last they were on the right track.

**This was the hardest chapter to write because no one in my family drinks. Also I rewrote it four times and I am still not happy with it but it's the best I could do. Sorry it took so long and it is so weak, the next chapter will be much stronger as it features Ryan and Esposito in New York.**

**Thanks for all of your support and feedback, you guys are the best.**

**Once again a big thank you goes out to Caskettfan5 for putting up with my many spelling mistakes.**


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Detective second class Kevin Ryan was feeling bored and depressed as he sat at his desk filling out routine paperwork on a routine by the numbers murder. There was nothing wrong with these types of cases, they deserved justice too and the easy ones meant he could make it home on time for a change and that would make Jenny very happy, the trouble was that the case and the paper work could not hold his attention. How were they supposed to when his boss and one of his friends were in hiding? He should be looking at the case that had sent them fleeing for cover, not the case of two drug dealers who got into a beef over turf and one had been stupid enough to shoot the other in front of a dozen witnesses. He had enough of those types of cases during his time with vice, plus people he cared about were in danger, how could he focus on something this stupid with that going on? Intellectually he knew that there was a good reason that cops were not allowed to work cases they had a personal stake in and he knew that if detectives were allowed to choose their own cases there would be chaos, still that knowledge was of little comfort to the Irish detective, He knew his friends and partners were in danger and he wished he could be doing something about it.

If only Gates were not in today maybe he and Esposito could sneak off and at least check out the scene of the car bomb once again. That whole set up still didn't make a lick of sense to him, but Gates had been watching them like a hawk ever since she had caught them with Beckett at the crime scene yesterday, so there was no chance of doing that. Part of him had to wonder if the older woman had been planted by someone powerful to get in their way. It was unlikely and everything she had done had been by the book, still every lead in this case had come from their team so he had to wonder if she was blocking them on purpose, stranger things had happened after all. If that was the case there was nothing he could do about it at the moment, so he just sighed and returned to his paper work, but it was only a couple of more minutes before he was bored again and looking across the bullpen at his partner.

If there was one person who was more upset then he was by the current state of affairs it was his partner, Detective second class Javier Esposito, he wasn't just upset by the turn of events he was frustrated and angry because of them. He was not showing his a emotions on his face, his years in the military and as a detective had taught him better then to do that, but anyone who knew him well could tell just how tense the Hispanic detective was. The way he moved the papers on his desk, the way he wrote with his pen and typed on his keyboard, and the way he held every muscle in his body as if he were a large predatory animal getting ready to strike at it's prey told the whole story. His team was under attack and he wasn't allowed to do anything about it, this simple fact was eating away at his insides. What was worse he had no way to contact Beckett so if something did go wrong he wouldn't know it, and he didn't trust Sorrenson to do his job right and for all he knew the FBI was involved. All of these thoughts were making it very hard for him to focus on his paper work.

Ryan needed to stretch his legs, he had been sitting at his desk filling out papers since he had gotten to work more then two hours before, so he stood up and made his way over to his friend and partner's desk.

"Hey, this is all pretty crazy, isn't it?" The Irish detective said as he placed his hands in his pockets and stepped in front of Epsosito's desk.

"Yeah, we should be working that case and Beckett shouldn't have to hide." The other detective said through clenched teeth without looking up from his paper work.

"No argument here, but we can't do anything about it as long as "Iron Gates" is running the place." Ryan replied with a dejected sigh. "Do you think that bomb yesterday at least took care of our sniper?" He then asked hopefully.

"No." Came the terse reply and again Esposito didn't look up at him.

"Why?" Ryan asked puzzled.

Esposito called on his military training to answer this question. "Because being a sniper and an explosive expert are two completely different skill sets and it is highly unlikely that one person would be able to shoot Castle at that range and rig a gas pipe to explode." He explained looking up at his friend at last but he was not showing any emotion on his face, most people would mistake this for coldness but in reality he was just keeping his feelings under control since there wasn't anything he could do to fix the problem.

"Great so only one of our perps got blown up and there are more where they came from and our sniper is still on the loose." Ryan said in an exasperated tone as he rubbed his right hand over his face.

"Yeah and these people are so powerful I wouldn't be surprised if they had someone inside the FBI." Esposito explained in a harsh whisper.

"And we can't do a thing about it because we are too busy worrying about drug dealers." Ryan said clenching his fists with anger.

"We just have to sit back and wait for news from the feds." Esposito agreed, just as angry as his partner. "I have an old army buddy looking through records for any ex military snipers or explosive experts who may fit this M.O and he is also looking into reports of any stolen C4 but I don't think he will find anything before the feds do." Esposito then added.

"At least that is something." Ryan conceded and he calmed down a second before adding. "I just don't like waiting."

"None of us do, bro." Esposito said as he looked up at his friend with a look which told him that he knew all too well how he felt. "Still sometimes it's the only thing you can do."

"I know, but I still don't like it." Ryan said with another frustrated huff.

"No one ever does." Esposito agreed and then he returned his attention to his paper work.

Ryan was about to make his way back to his own desk when suddenly Captain Victoria Gates stuck her head out of her office. As always her face didn't betray any emotions and her manner was efficient and business like. "Epsosito and Ryan." She barked out.

"Here." Ryan replied.

"Yes, Sir." Esposito responded remembering to use the title the older woman insisted on while turning in his chair to face her.

"The FBI wants to talk to you. Report to Special Agent Cauldwell at the federal building A.S.A.P." Gates called out and then just as quickly she ducked back into her office to get on with her own work.

"What's that about?" Ryan asked as he turned to fix his friend with a puzzled look.

"Beats me, maybe they want to ask us some more questions about Montgomery." Esposito answered has he grabbed his jacket off of the back of his chair. The mention of the man who betrayed them caused both detectives to become silent, lost in their own thoughts, this silence lasted until they made their way inside the federal building some twenty minutes later.

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Kelly and Beckett had insisted on making Castle a healthy breakfast of oatmeal and fruit, much to Castle's chagrin, he wanted a S'Morelett. The only thing that caused him to stop objecting to this was Kelly pointing out that he would need to watch what he ate from then on if he didn't want to balloon up and become very fat. Great, another reason to hate being in the chair.

As Castle watched Beckett and Kelly make his breakfast, he thought about how much he hated seeing Kate reduced to such a role but he couldn't reach the stove so someone had to do it for him and she had insisted. Still Beckett's place was out catching murderers, not in the kitchen making meals for him, yet another thing to add to the ever growing list of things he hated about being in a wheelchair.

Castle was unsure how he felt about the fact that Beckett and Kelly seemed to be getting along now for some reason. On the one hand it made his life easier if he didn't have to worry about them fighting over him, that thought made him smile smugly to himself, after all of the years Beckett hadn't let him in now she was fighting for him, that was a good feeling. Still it did make things complicated when she was mad at the young woman and he had no idea what had caused her to soften but since it made his life easier to a degree he guessed he was happy with the latest turn of events. Then again it did mean they could gang up on him as had been the case with breakfast. He really didn't like that idea, still in the end he had agreed to watch what he ate, he didn't want Kate to have to put up with him getting fat along with everything else. It was bad enough that he was crippled before they got together, he didn't need to be ugly on top of that. Still he knew she wasn't leaving, at least he kept telling himself that, he had no idea why he found that so hard to believe but he would not hurt her by bringing it up again, he just hoped these doubts would go away soon.

Castle had to admit that despite his moments of doubt the morning was going rather well even if it did feel a little strange. He had to keep reminding himself just how early it was and that despite his being up for almost two hours it was much earlier then Martha or Alexis normally got up when they didn't have an acting class or school to get to in the morning, so there was nothing wrong with them not being up yet. Still it just felt wrong to be the first one up when he hadn't been woken up by his phone alerting him to the location of a murder. He was normally the latest riser of the bunch so there was just something off about being up before them. Of course that wasn't the only thing that was off, he wasn't in his loft either, and he had not woken up in his own bed. He had also woken up next to Kate, that part he didn't mind so much but it was still strange and he would have to get used to it. Then there was the fact that her father Jim, a man he had only met once before, was sitting at the dining room table slowly eating a piece of toast and drinking his coffee.

Castle was not sure what to make of Jim Beckett, the fact was Kate didn't talk about him all that much and Castle had only had one real conversation with the man and that was about how Kate's life had been in danger, All he really knew about the older gray haired man was that he was a lawyer and he had taken to the bottle when his wife died, that wasn't a lot to go on when it came to know him as a person. However Castle was reluctant to start up a conversation with the man, for one because talking to the father of a woman you had just had sex with the night before was awkward, there was no way around that, and two because the man looked tired and depressed, with good reason after what he had done yesterday. Castle knew that feeling all too well and he knew when he was feeling like that the last thing he wanted was to have deep, meaningful conversations at the crack of dawn, Jim Beckett looked like he felt like a used garbage bag that had a Thanksgiving day parade marching through his head. It was understandable that he would not be feeling his best this morning, still he wished he could clear the air and end the awkward silence that existed between them but he also knew it just was not the right time, so he would wait.

Breakfast passed quietly, Kate seemed to know both of the men in her life well enough to know that this was not the time to strike up a conversation. Kelly didn't seem to be quite so on the ball and tried to make cheerful conversation throughout the meal, everyone was polite but quiet and Castle was grateful when he finished eating and could leave the table for more reasons then one. He had forgotten how much he detested oatmeal, even with brown sugar he could not stand the stuff and was glad to be done with it at last when he finished.

The motor of Castle's wheelchair came to life as he backed away from the table, drawing Jim Beckett's attention and causing him to look over at the writer for a moment, but only a moment. Still in that one brief glance Castle saw something in the man's eyes he didn't like, it was pity. He didn't want pity, He was Richard Castle, world famous writer and ladies man, people didn't pity him, they envied him! He had had enough pity when he was a boy and adults would take pity on him for not having a father, as if that some how made him less of a person or someone who needed their help. He didn't need anyone's help or pity, he could handle this, He was not going to be an object of pity, somehow he had to walk again. He would not let this stupid noisy chair define him.

It was as Castle finished these thoughts that he noticed Jim quietly get up from the table and make his way to the kitchen door and outside. He didn't even look at Castle as he walked by the writer but Castle saw his face and on it was a completely different expression then the one that had been there a moment before, was that guilt? What did Jim Beckett have to feel guilty about? A moment later it hit Castle and he felt like an idiot. Castle had saved his daughter's life after he had told him that he was the only one who could, didn't he understand that Castle would have jumped in front of the bullet no mater what? Castle guessed not if the look on the older man's face was anything to go by. Was guilt over his shooting one of the reasons he had fallen off the wagon? Castle didn't know but if there was even a chance of that he needed to make sure Jim understood that the sniper would have been there no matter what the lawyer had done and Castle would have jumped in front of the bullet no matter what. With these thoughts on his mind and before Kate or Kelly could say anything Castle made his way over to the large sliding door and down the ramp and out into the front yard.

The sun was just peeking up over the horizon as Castle made his way off of the ramp. The sun was giving everything a slightly yellowish glow and was causing everything to cast shadows on the ground behind them including Jim Beckett who was standing silently in the middle of the front lawn looking out towards the sun rise. The grass was moist with the dew of a fresh early summer morning, and Castle was glad he had opted for an all terrain model of wheelchair since he was pretty sure a normal wheelchair would have gotten stuck in the grass. There was a gentle breeze that blew the pleasant smells woods through the yard. The scene was one of perfect peace but there was a tension underlying everything as Castle brought his wheelchair up besides the right hand side of Jim Beckett, the man didn't look at him so Castle decided he would have to start the conversation.

"It's not your fault you know." Castle said quietly, looking up at the older man who was standing beside him. Jim's only response was to take a deep pained breath and then take two steps sideways to put some distance between himself and the writer. Castle responded by turning his wheelchair and facing Jim before speaking again. "It's not you know. That sniper would have been there and so would I even if you had not come to my loft that night." Castle said firmly.

Jim then turned and his face didn't show any emotion but he had his hands in his pockets and he was looking down at his feet, when he spoke his voice was calm but full of guilt. "I put a burden on your shoulders that wasn't yours and now you and your family have been wrecked because of it. It was my job to protect Kate, not yours." Jim explained without looking directly at the writer.

"No it wasn't." Castle said shaking his head. "Kate is a grown woman and a cop you can't protect her, you didn't cause me to do anything."

"That's nice of you to say but she is my family and not yours and your family nearly lost you because I can't take care of my own family." Jim said doubtfully, still looking down at his shoes.

"You are wrong." Castle said firmly and this got Jim to look at him at long last and the looked like he was going to object but Castle would not let him. "Kate is part of my family, she has been for a while, it's just the two of us were too stupid to see it. If she had been shot it would have hurt my family just as much."

"How can you say that when you are stuck in that chair?" Jim demanded clenching his fist, this was clearly a very hard conversation for him to have but Castle was not able to let it go now.

"This." Castle said indicating the wheelchair with his right hand. "Can't wreck my family, we will get through this and adjust. I would have been at the funeral no matter what, if I had never met you I still would have jumped in front of that bullet and I would still be in this chair."

"You can't know that." Jim objected.

"Okay, let's say that you are right." Castle said as he clenched his jaw, he was becoming slightly frustrated with this man who seemed to be going out of his way to take responsibility for actions that were not his. "Let's say that if you had not come to my loft then I wouldn't have been there and would not have gotten shot, in that case I am glad you came to my loft!" Castle said forcefully, this drew a shocked look from Jim so he continued. "If I had not been there Kate would have been killed and I would rather never walk again then see that happen."

Jim seemed to take a few moments to process this and then the guilt slowly started to slip a way and when he spoke it was in a hushed tone of voice. "You really do love her, don't you son?" He asked.

"Yes sir, I do." Castle replied respectfully and then added with some force. "And I will not stand by and watch her get hurt if I can help it. When you take on guilt that isn't yours and give yourself an excuse to drink you hurt her." Castle fixed the older man with a firm stare that showed he was all business and couldn't be messed with.

Jim silently nodded that he understood and then added. "I am glad my daughter has someone like you beside her, I have let her down too many times."

"Just make sure you never let her down again and everything will be fine." Castle said firmly.

"I'll do my best." Jim said sadly turning to look at the rising sun.

"See that you do, because I mean it I will not stand by while you hurt her." Castle said as he turned his wheelchair and headed back to the house. As he did so he didn't see Kate quietly slide the door closed and head for the reading area and start reading a copy of Storm Season she had brought with her. She had witnessed the whole exchange and a few times she had been tempted to step in but she was glad to see her father and her partner had worked things out on their own, she would never tell them that she had seen the whole thing, she would just let the two men think it was a secret between them. She didn't even look up from behind her book when she heard Castle reenter the house, but she smiled to herself for just a moment and then returned to reading the book. This was indeed a brand new day and chapter in her life.

**The holidays are just playing havoc with my writing, sorry. This chapter was going to be much longer but I wanted to be sure I got something posted before Christmas. I will try to post another chapter before then but I can't promise anything.**

**Thanks for putting up with my delays and reading and reviewing, as always you guys are the best.**

**Thanks again, Caskettfan5. You are a huge help in making my stories readable.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

The FBI Special Agent who was in charge of what had been dubbed "The dragon case" was a middle aged man of Scotch-Irish decent named Micheal Cauldwell. He stood just barely six feet tall and was slightly over weight but not grossly so, he had bright red hair that was only just starting to turn gray which he kept in a short buzz cut. The wrinkles on his face and the deep penetrating gaze that radiated from his brown eyes,seemed to act as an x-ray into the soul of whomever he was speaking with, and gave him the look of a wise all knowing grandfather from whom nothing could be hidden. When he spoke his voice had a gentle reassuring quality to it but his eyes and face gave the impression that this was just velvet covering steel and he was not to be trifled with, this had enabled him to break his share of hardened suspects, still he was not too proud to admit when he needed help. The name of the game after all was closing cases and locking up bad guys. Anything that helped him reach that goal was good in his opinion, and anything that got in the way of that goal, including his personal pride, was bad.

In his twenty-seven year carrier with the Bureau he had earned a reputation for handling complex cases that involved political corruption and organized crime, he wasn't one to play politics so other more political agents tended to take credit for cases he cracked but everyone who mattered knew he was the guy you wanted working the cases that other agents couldn't crack and that was all that mattered to him. Still in all his years he had never encountered a case this big or this complex and he wasn't about to let his pride stand in the way of solving it, he would take whatever help he could get in order to crack this case.

Cauldwell had joined the FBI after a brief stint in the marines, he had done well with basic training and had been made a sniper and he had killed two enemy soldiers, while on a covert mission, he did not regret what he had done but he didn't like doing it at all, shortly after this he had left. Since he had joined the FBI he had drawn his weapon many times but he was proud of the fact that in over a quarter century of service he had never once had to fire his weapon at another person. If he had one odd personal tick that people would comment on it was that when he was frustrated or just thinking very hard he would pace back and forth across his office while snapping his fingers, he himself had no idea why he did such a thing he only knew that ever since he was a child it had helped him focus when he was having trouble solving a problem.

At that moment Special Agent Cauldwell was pacing back and forth in front of his large wooden desk while snapping his fingers. He was not one to turn away help when he needed it but he also disliked being out of control of any given situation and he didn't like calling in outsiders to work on his case, and when he could not be one hundred percent sure that the outsiders were not involved in the case he disliked it even more. It was bad enough that something this big had slipped under the FBI's radar for so long and they didn't even have a clue that it was going on but now they couldn't even solve the problem themselves. Mike Cauldwell didn't play politics but even he could see that this was a huge black eye for the Bureau and that whoever was behind this case was powerful so the more people were involved with the investigation the more likely it became that information would leak and whoever was behind this complex web would vanish, never to be seen again.

Still he had to weigh these facts against the fact that whoever was behind this was completely ruthless and would stop at nothing, including blowing up a hospital in order to cover up his or her crimes. This person was clearly a terrorist in the worst sense, it didn't matter to Cauldwell if the FBI would ever call this person a terrorist in public this person was willing to engage in mass murder in order to farther his or her own ends so that made then a terrorist and he couldn't afford to take one second longer then was necessary to bring them down. Every second this monster was free put people's lives in danger so he had put aside his own personal misgivings and called the mayor of New York city to get the help of two NYPD detectives who's help he needed at that moment. He would work with them to solve the case but he would not trust them and he would keep a strict eye on everything they did.

This was how detectives Ryan and Esposito first laid eyes on the special agent as they were buzzed into his office, he was pacing back and forth in front of his desk snapping his fingers with his eyes fixed on the floor as he did so, he didn't even seem to notice the two detectives entering the room. Ryan and Esposito exchanged a brief worried look and then returned their attention to the older man.

Ryan was the first to speak. "Special Agent Cauldwell?" He asked taking a step forward.

"You must be detective Ryan." The older man stated turning his attention to the Irish detective, he had learned long ago not to be embarrassed by his little personal quirks and he extended his right hand, which Ryan took after a second.

"That would make you Detective Esposito." Cauldwell said a moment latter, turning his attention to the hispanic detective. Esposito took his hand with a strong, firm grasp that told the story of a man who had served in the armed forces and still kept in shape, once he took Cauldwell's hand he shook it in a less then friendly manner before asking the question that was on both his and Ryan's minds. "Why are we here?"

"Right, down to business." the older man replied as he motioned for Ryan and Esposito to have a seat in two office chairs that were in front of his desk, he then made his way behind the desk and sat down. "As you know the FBI is holding Mister Chang in custody in this building after the incident at the hospital."

"Incident?" Ryan blurted out, shocked at how calmly the older man seemed to be taking the latest development in the case. "They set off a god damn bomb!"

"Yes and let me assure you that we are taking this mater very seriously." Cauldwell responded, Neither Ryan nor Esposito seemed very reassured but a life time of working high profile cases had taught Special Agent Cauldwell the folly of giving too much away before a conviction was secured, he liked to play his cards very close to his chest. "This case and bringing down the man known as "The Dragon" is our highest priority at the moment, that is why I am here and why I have called you in."

Esposito in particular did not seem impressed. "Really?" He asked leaning forward in his chair. "Because this all seems like a waste of time, everything we know about "The Dragon" is in our reports. Chang is our best lead, you should be grilling him instead of us."

Cauldwell did not let the implication of incompetence affect him, in fact his face betrayed no emotions at all, he continued addressing both men as if Esposito had never spoken. "Mister Chang is our best lead at the moment, We are following the money trail but that will take time and Mister Chang seems to have had a face to face meeting with a high level member of "The Dragon's" organization so we are hoping to use him to close this case fast."

"Good, because this guy is ruthless, he was willing to blow up a hospital just to get at Castle and Beckett." Ryan said, he still didn't trust the man sitting across the desk from him but it at least sounded like he was on the right track.

"Indeed, ideally we will close this case before he kills again but it is clear he is powerful, rich, and has contacts in high places so I can't promise anything." Cauldwell explained coldly, still despite the lack of emotion showing on the older man's face Esposito thought he detected a hint of frustration in the his voice, it was slight but it was there. It was the same type of frustration he had heard in his commanding officers' voices when they got tired of dealing with Terrorists who refused to come out and fight and instead used unseen explosive devices to do their dirty work for them, he could tell this man wanted the problem taken care of but was hitting one wall after another.

"What do you need from us?" Esposito asked as he leaned forward in his chair slightly, he wasn't sure if he should fully trust this stranger but his instincts told him the man was invested in bringing "The Dragon" to justice.

"Well as I said Mister Chang is our best lead but he is refusing to talk to us, he says he doesn't trust us because he doesn't know if we are involved so he is refusing to give us anything." Cauldwell explained looking from one of the detectives that was seated in front of him to the other.

"So, we caught him in the middle of a plot to blow up a hospital." Ryan said, fixing the special agent with a puzzled look.

"Yeah, just put the screws to him and he will talk. Why do you need us?" Epsosito scoffed, he wasn't sure he understood what the problem was, breaking this guy should be easy.

"Normally that is exactly what we would do but with lives on the line I want this case closed as quickly as possible, and breaking Mister Chang will take two or three days." Cauldwell calmly explained.

"Okay, how can we help?" Ryan asked, like his partner he was now at least willing to listen to the man across the desk from him.

"Mister Chang says he will talk to the officers who arrested him, he says he trusts you." Cauldwell explained as he leaned forward slightly in his chair. "We need you to find out everything he knows and get a description of his contact."

"Sounds easy enough." Esposito said with a shrug and Ryan nodded that he agreed.

"I want you to understand that you will be answering to me on this case and we will be doing things by the book, no more of this off the grid behind the scenes stuff." Cauldwell said firmly, Ryan and Esposito didn't much like his tone but he didn't give them time to object. "Whoever this guy is he is rich and powerful so he will have an army of lawyers and when we catch him I don't want to give them anything they can use. This is the type of scumbag we only get one shot at and I am not letting him get away because of sloppy case work, understood?!"

Ryan and Esposito didn't care for what the special agent was implying but they both had seen enough cases fall apart in court to at least understand where the man was coming from, then there was the fact that this man was their best way back onto the case and Beckett's life hung in the balance, so they swallowed their pride and nodded that they understood.

"All right then, I will show you to one of our interrogation rooms." Cauldwell said as he stood up and the two detectives stood to follow him, they were back on the case and hopefully things were about to hit the fan.

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"Richard do you know exactly where we are at the moment?!" Martha Rodgers huffed in frustration as she paced back and forth in front of her son, who had been enjoying the mid morning breeze which blew through the open windows of the living room/ porch. Castle was tempted to respond with something smart ass since he was under enough stress at the moment without worrying about his mother's petty complaints, but a life time of living with her had taught him the folly of interrupting her when she was venting so he kept his mouth shut and only half listened to her rant. "We are off of the map, we are no longer on planet earth." The actress said raising her arms in the air melodramatically as she turned to face her son.

"It not that bad." Castle scoffed trying to sound amused by his mother's antics but deep down he knew he would be bouncing off of the walls in a few days as well, that is if he could walk he would be bouncing off the walls, instead he was sure that soon he would slowly be going crazy without bouncing off of the walls in a few days. He knew how she felt, trapped and cut off, but he didn't know what else he could do about it other then assure her it was not that bad and let her vent. He really had gotten his family into a fine mess this time, if only he had listened to Beckett when she told him not to go digging in her mother's case, still the past could not be undone, so he had to deal with the problems of life as they stood at that moment.

"Oh really?!" Martha blurted out shocked, and then she took a couple of steps closer to her son. "These people have never even heard of the theater! There is no true culture here, the biggest thing that ever happens here is a new Wal-Mart opening. I have watched the news, it's insane, people can not live like this." She said and then added with a sigh. "It destroys the spirit."

"Well I don't know what to tell you mother, this is how most people live." Castle explained calmly.

"This is not living, this is existing. There is no passion here, no soul." Martha rebutted with a wave of her hand.

"So what, you are saying, everyone who lives here is a zombie?" Castle said with a laugh.

"Yes they are, they have nothing that makes life worth living." Martha said in a mater of fact manor.

"Well then it's a good thing I have been working on my zombie survival strategy since 2004." Castle rebuffed.

"Unless this strategy involves bringing culture to the zombies I am not interested." Martha replied, she could tell she was being mocked and she was not having any of it.

"There is more to life then the theater." Castle pointed out, but all this did was draw a look of disbelief from his Mother. He knew that was a mistake, never question the importance of the theater to Martha Rodger's face, that was heresy and she would burn you to the stake.

"What, court TV?! That isn't art that is trash, theater is the highest art form, it has been practiced in every culture since the dawn of time. If you don't have theater, you don't have a civilization." The actress stated and she advanced to within a few steps of her son.

Castle was trying to figure out how to respond to this when his daughter stepped into the room. "Sorry to interrupt, but your psychiatrist is here, dad." The redhead reported and Castle could tell that while his daughter was trying to sound cheerful, she wasn't taking to the new living conditions much better then her grandmother and a fresh wave of guilt washed over him. Still he was glad to have been saved by the bell and to be able to leave the room and the argument with his mother behind, as selfish as that may have been. Castle thanked his daughter and she left the room as he brought his wheelchair to life and began to follow her.

"But Richard what are we supposed to do?!" His mother called out.

"You're brilliant Mother, I am sure you will figure something out." Castle called out as he left the room. He was not looking forward to his first meeting with the new head shrink but at least it would be a change and who knew, maybe he would get lucky and it would help.

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In the all white interrogation room of the FBI field office in New York city, detectives Ryan and Esposito were becoming impatient, they had been waiting more then ten minutes for Chang to be brought up to speak with them. Even Special Agent Cauldwell was pacing back and forth, so the two detectives guessed that this wait was far from normal and that made them nervous, still no one said a word.

Another minute passed and there was a buzz on the intercom, Cauldwell made his way over to the wall by the one way glass and hit the talk button on the intercom.

"Cauldwell." He stated tersely.

"Sir, this is agent Kelly, I think you need to get down to the holding cells now." A male voice said through the slight feedback put out by the intercom, but everyone could tell the voice was worried.

"What is wrong?" Cauldwell demanded.

"Sir I really think you will want to see for yourself." Kelly insisted.

"Okay, we will be right down." Cauldwell said with a sigh, and he signaled for Ryan and Epsosito to follow him. As the two detectives stood up and followed the special agent out of the room they exchanged a look, they knew that whatever had happened it could not be good.

There were about a dozen people in the hall that ran passed the holding cells by the time the three men got there, but they did not have to make it to the cell to know what had happened, they could smell it. Death has an unmistakable smell, and all three men knew it for too well to mistake it for anything else.

Agents and medics cleared out of the way as the three men entered the cell and when they did their worst fears were confirmed. Chang's eyes were open and lifeless, his tongue was sticking out of his mouth, his face was slightly blue, his bowels had released, and he was hanging about a foot off of the floor by a belt that was wrapped around his neck with the other end wrapped around the metal frame of the top bunk of the bunk bed that was in the cell. He was dead.

"Oh God." Ryan said turning away, He had seen far worse deaths in his time with the NYPD, but this was their best lead.

"Why the hell wasn't he on suicide watch!" Esposito demanded and he turned and grabbed the special agent who was standing beside him by his suit coat. Esposito was no expert but even he knew that a man like this who was forced to get involved in the bombing of a hospital should be watched because he may choose the easy way out.

"It wasn't suicide." Ryan state simply as he returned his attention to the dead man hanging from the bed.

"Yeah, we had him on suicide watch." Cauldwell said calmly as he pushed the detective off of him and then he pointed to the right hand front corner of the cell. He was not going to panic he knew better then to do that, but he did know they were in trouble.

Ryan and Esposito looked to where the older man was pointing and they saw a security camera that had been smashed.

"Do you know what this means?!" Esposito demanded as he returned his attention to Special Agent Cauldwell, he was still angry.

"Yes I do." Cauldwell replied somberly. "It means we have to be very careful."

"The Dragon has someone inside the FBI." Ryan said finishing the thought.

"Shit!" Esposito exclaimed and he punched the wall. They were back at square one and they didn't know who they could trust.

**Finally I posted a new chapter. Sorry it has been more then a month, things got a little crazy after the holidays but I am now pleased to report that regular updates are back. Thanks for sticking with me, most readers would have given up after such a wait, you guys are the best. As always I value every review and PM.**

**Thanks for reading and supporting this story.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan 5 for helping me edit this chapter and catching a bunch of mistakes I missed.**


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

Kate Beckett walked slowly through the back yard, the slightly damp grass clung to her white sneakers as she lazily made her way in the direction of the woods. She listened to the sounds of nature while at the same time taking in every detail of the property she could with her eyes, she had not been out to the country since she was a small child and she had forgotten how much she had enjoyed the peace and quiet and the sights, sounds, and smells of nature. Still that was before it all went wrong, her mother had still been alive then and she had been visiting relatives, not hiding out under an assumed name. As she let her mind drift back on the gently swaying sea of memories for the first time in a long time to those carefree days where she had nothing more to worry about then being in awe of the horses, chickens, pigs, and cows she enjoyed watching she admitted to herself that she missed those days. She would never admit this to anyone else and she couldn't afford to admit it to herself most days, but she now wished those times would have never ended. She missed the days when she didn't have to worry about dead bodies.

She missed not having to be tough and deal with drug dealers who killed over a street corner. She missed not having to worry about there being a bullet somewhere out there with her name on it. She missed not having to worry if her actions or even things outside of her control would drive her father back to the bottle he he dove into head first after her mother had died. Most of all she missed her mom. She missed having someone to talk to who wasn't her partner, or related to her partner in some way. She missed just being able to sit down and talk to a woman who wasn't one of her friends and or who didn't work with her. She missed the way her mother would always find a way to cheer her up and would tell her to never give up fighting for what was right. She wondered what her mother would think of her giving up the most important fight of her life and going into hiding, would she understand and forgive her daughter, Kate wasn't sure she could forgive herself. She knew she had done the right thing for Castle, but giving up just didn't sit well with her, she wished she could ask her mother in person what the right thing to do was. Still that couldn't be done and she had to live with the choices she had made. Kate let out a heavy sigh that spoke volumes about how confused and depressed she was at the moment.

By this point Kate Beckett had reached the very edge of the woods, the lawn tapered off and was replaced with dirt, old dead leaves, and small sticks and branches of trees. She took a minute to calm herself, knowing that filling her mind with guilt and self doubt would not help anyone, she had to find a way to calm down and live with the choices she had made. She closed her eyes and took a deep cleansing breath through her nose, letting the smell of the damp forest overwhelm her and wash all over thoughts from her mind. She listened to the sounds of the forest and let the chirping of the bugs, the tweeting of the birds, and the sounds of small creatures running through the underbrush just out of eyesight soothe her, maybe coming this far out wasn't a mistake, if she had to sit the case out at least she was somewhere she could totally relax.

At that moment she was so calm she had to reminder herself that she still had to keep an eye on her father, there were bound to be plenty of bars around and they were in the type of place where all of their neighbors would be drinking beer, so even though there was no temptation in the house, he could easily relapse again. Years of both dealing with her father and being a cop had taught her the sad truth about just how far an addict would go and what kind of excuses they would make to get his or her fix. At this thought she felt a hint of panic rise from the pit of her stomach, she closed her eyes and took another deep breath willing it back down, but she could not get rid of it completely, it was now an undercurrent running beneath the ocean of calm that was on her surface, still it was better then it could be. Then again it was now there constantly distracting her and she would have to be on her guard against it. Still at that exact moment it was not overwhelming her so she decided to enjoy her surroundings, she closed her eyes yet again and took in another calming breath.

Suddenly just as her muscles are starting to relax and go limp Beckett hears the sound of a twig snapping behind her and just to the right, she instantly tenses and spins around in a defensive posture and what she sees make her think that maybe Castle isn't the only one who was put on edge by his shooting.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you." Sorrenson said apologetically as he carefully took a couple of steps closer to Beckett.

"What do you want, Will?" Beckett demanded as she turned away from the FBI special agent, she was clearly annoyed by his presence.

"I saw you out here and I thought that maybe we could, talk." Sorrenson said carefully as he took a few careful steps forward.

"What about?!" Beckett demanded, becoming angry but still refusing to look at him. "If this is about us don't bother, I am with Castle now and there was a good reason we broke up." She stated firmly.

"That's not why I am here." Sorrenson replied defensively and then he added with anger showing in his voice. "This may be hard for you to believe but I moved on from you, I have a life of my own that I built in Boston. I didn't come out here to win you back."

This got Beckett's attention and she turned to face him. "Then why did you come here?" She demanded .

"Because I still consider you a friend and I know why we got so close to begin with." Sorrenson explained just barely keeping control. "Kate, I know my relationship with my brother isn't exactly like the one you have with your father but I have seen him relapse but into drug addiction more then once and I know how hard that is to see." Beckett seemed to soften a little at this and Sorrenson took a breath and calmed down before he continued. "I just wanted to let you know that if you need someone to talk to who knows what it's like who isn't your boyfriend or his family, I am here as a friend." Sorrenson then turned to walk away but a moment latter Beckett called after him.

"Will, Thanks." Beckett said carefully and then added. "If I need it I will talk to you but right now I just need to be alone."

"Alright, see you latter." Sorrenson said and then he turned away again and walked off towards one of the sheds.

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Detectives Ryan and Esposito had been waiting in Special Agent Cauldwell's office for over half an hour, ever since seeing the body in the holding cell. They had long since run out of ways to complain about how badly the FBI had screwed up so they were passing the time by alternating between standing and pacing back and forth across the room, fuming about the current situation the whole time. Finally after what seemed like hours the door to the office opened and Special Agent Cauldwell leaned half way into the room, his face didn't betray any emotion but there seemed to be a nervous energy about him. "Let's take a walk." He said simply and he glanced from Esposito and then to Ryan, they in turn gave each other a confused look and then made to follow him.

On the way down and out of the building the detectives tried to question him about what was going on but he evaded their questions until they had exited the building and where on the crowded New York street, full of people and noise. He then began walking down the street and when they had put a few hundred feet between themselves and the federal building he finally turned to address the two perplexed detectives.

"Could you take the batteries out of your cellphones, please." He asked as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

"What?" Ryan asked clearly confused.

"What is going on here?!" Esposito demanded, not liking this latest turn of events.

"I will tell you in a minute but for now will you please remove your batteries from your cellphones." The special agent replied forcefully.

Suddenly Ryan thought he got the picture and he didn't like it, he then turned to address his partner. "I think we should do what he says."

"What, why?" Esposito demanded, he was clearly confused. "Just trust me and I will explain in a minute." Ryan said forcefully and he was clearly worried.

"Okay." Esposito said with a shrug and then a moment later he pulled out his cellphone and removed the battery, Ryan did the same a moment later.

"Thank you." Special Agent Cauldwell said and he seemed to become a little less worried. "Years of fighting organized crime has taught me how to evade surveillance." He explained simply and then began walking down the street again with Ryan and Esposito following close behind.

"You had us remove the batteries so no one could use our cellphones to listen in on us, the dealers used to do it when I worked with vice." Ryan said addressing Cauldwell.

"Yes, exactly." Cauldwell said and his manner seemed to become grim and he was constantly scanning the street now, to try and spot any cars or people who may have been following them.

"But only someone in law enforcement could do that." Esposito pointed out.

"That is the point." Cauldwell said grimly, his face darkened but to his credit there was no sign of panic either on his face or in his voice. "The reason no one checked in the cell when the camera was destroyed was that no one knew the camera was destroyed."

"How could that happen?" Ryan asked puzzled.

"Someone hacked the system and looped old footage from the cell so whoever killed Chang was not seen and we have a six hour window where it could have happened." Cauldwell explained as he came to a stop and turned to face the two detectives who were slightly behind him.

"If they could do that then why break the camera?" Ryan asked.

"It was to send us a message." Esposito explained somberly. "They want us to know that they have people everywhere, even the FBI and that if we don't back off we will get hurt."

"Like that is going to happen." Ryan scoffed but everyone remained quiet for a moment as they stopped and considered their situation. When someone finally spoke it was Cauldwell and there was a cold as steel look in his eyes and his voice was grave.

"If we continue with this it will literally be a life or death fight." Cauldwell explained gravely and he gave the two detectives another moment to fully take in the gravity of their situation before he continued. "The Dragon will have no choice but to kill us to protect his secret so we can't hold back anything, we have to be all in and that means we can't worry about anything except getting him, this will be a fight to the death and if we have to do something that will cost us our jobs in order to come out alive on the other end of this thing that is what we will have to do. So are you in?"

Ryan and Esposito took a moment and then they both nodded that they were in. "What happened to playing by the rules?" Esposito asked as they followed Cauldwell who had now turned and began walking back towards the FBI building.

"Do you know what all the truly great generals of history had in common?" Cauldwell asked without turning to face either man.

"They could all shout really loud in a battlefield?" Ryan asked jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

"When they found the rules of the game stacked against them they changed the rules of the game. That is what we are about to do, change the rules." Cauldwell explained calmly.

"So you have a plan?" Esposito asked.

"Yes, I have a plan." The older man replied. The three men then made their way back into the federal building unsure of what the future would hold other then danger, but they also knew that at that moment they were one hundred percent committed and there was no turning back. Live or die they were now in this until the end.

**Wow, the response I got from the last chapter was amazing, I didn't expect it after I kept you all waiting so long. Sorry about that and thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, and favorited this story so far. You guys are the best and the reason I keep going. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for catching a bunch of mistakes and making this chapter readable.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

Things were not going well, at least they were not in Richard Castle's opinion. He sat in the office of the FBI safe house talking to his Psychiatrist, they had chosen this room because it afforded the most privacy and Castle was glad of it because despite holding his feelings in check on the outside on the inside he didn't know if he should cry or scream.

He fixed his gaze on the woman who sat in the chair across from where he had parked his wheelchair. She was a few years older then him and her face had a few winkles on it. Her hair was a sort of off blond and cut to shoulder length. She wore minimal make up and she was tall for a woman, only about one inch shorter then Castle himself. She wore a standard blue business suit with a knee length skirt and she held a pad of yellow legal paper and a pen in her hand. Beside the chair she had placed the small leather briefcase she had brought with her and Castle glanced down at it for a second to avoid her intense gaze. Over all Dr. Jackie Franklin had the air of someone who knew her business and would push until she got to the truth, the trouble was Castle had asked her a question which in turn had prompted a question from her and he was not sure of what the true answer was.

It was bad enough being told that while his panic attacks were normal they were also something he would have to work on if he wanted them to get better, but this was some how worse then that. It was some how more personal and Castle could not come up with an answer so he avoided looking straight into her eyes as his mind raced and he tried to figure out what the real answer was.

"Mr. Castle didn't you hear me?" Doctor Franklin asked and her voice was gentle but firm. This caused Castle to look her in the eye. He could tell that she was trying to help and she would not leave without an answer to her question. The trouble was he had no idea what the true answer was, he needed to play for time.

"I'm Sorry, could you repeat the question?" The writer asked trying to appear absent minded but he had a feeling she saw right through his act still she looked at him and asked the question again, this time more firmly.

"I asked you why you have doubts about your relationship with Detective Beckett, why do you think it will not last?" The doctor inquired and this caused Castle's mind to begin racing, he had so many conflicting thoughts and he didn't know which were causing him to think Beckett would leave him and he should not get too invested in the relationship. The trouble was he still couldn't zero in on why these thoughts seemed to keep canceling out Beckett's actions.

"I have no idea!" Castle at last replied as he slammed his fist down on his leg. "She keeps telling me she wants me and does her best to show me but for some reason deep down I don't believe her and I have no idea why." Castle added and frustration was showing in his voice.

"Okay, calm down and take a breath." Doctor Franklin said patiently. "You are a writer, right?" She asked a moment later and Castle nodded that this was true not sure what she was getting at so he didn't say anything and just let the woman continue. "I want you to try something. I want you to stop thinking about this as your own problem and start thinking about this as a problem a character in one of your books would have. I want you to think about what reason you would give for a character having these feelings and if they are justified or not." Doctor Franklin calmly explained.

Castle nodded that he understood and then began thinking about the problem in this new way. He looked down at his lap and his two useless legs and then slowly something began to dawn on him. It was so simple he wasn't sure why he hadn't thought of this before but when he thought of himself as a character it became plain as day.

"Have you come up with anything?" Doctor Franklin asked a minute latter.

"I am not sure, but I think so." Castle replied and he slowly raised his eyes up off of his lap. "I would say that this character has no reason to doubt his girlfriend, but it's not her he is doubting" Doctor Franklin nodded to confirm he was on the right track and Castle continued carefully. "This character would instead be doubting himself, he wouldn't feel like he was good enough for her and somewhere he would be thinking she should be with someone better. Someone who wasn't in a wheelchair, she would have told him that it didn't matter but he wouldn't be able to believe it because he doesn't believe in himself any more."

"And how do you think this would make the girlfriend character feel?" Doctor Franklin pressed.

"Insulted." Castle said without thinking and then a look of shame passed over his face as he was hit by a sudden revelation. "She would feel like he was a accusing her of being shallow, not knowing who she loved and why, and worst of all if he was so willing to push her away after so many years she would wonder if he had decided she wasn't worth it now that they were finally together and she would begin to think he must not really love her." Castle looked down at his lap.

"Okay, It's okay we all have moments of self doubt and get confused at some point in our lives." Doctor Franklin explained gently, Castle still didn't look up at her so she continued. "After what you have been through this is normal but if you don't want this to destroy your relationships with other people you have to learn to control these thoughts."

"How?" Castle asked brokenly, looking up at the doctor.

"I am going to give you an exercise." Doctor Franklin explained. Castle gave her a puzzled look he didn't know if he liked the idea of getting home work from his head shrink, but he would try anything to fix his relationship with Kate, She was worth it. "I will be seeing you three times a week right now and between now and our next meeting if you have any of these thoughts that ultimately are destructive to yourself or your relationships. I want you to go somewhere that you can be alone and take a moment to write out exactly what happened and how it makes you feel as if you are writing about a fictional character and read what you have written to yourself before taking actions based on your feelings."

Castle nodded that he understood, as strange and silly as this sounded it made a certain amount of sense and he wished he had thought of it before he had said and done things over the past few days that he wished he could take back.

"Okay I think we have done enough for today." Doctor Franklin said and she reached into her briefcase and pulled out a small pad of paper and began writing on it. "I am writing you a prescription that will help you deal with the panic attacks like the one you had this morning." Doctor Franklin explained and then she handed the piece of paper to Castle. He nodded, this made him feel worse, now he needed drugs to deal with his problems but he decided to handle one thing at a time. "I am seeing your daughter Alexis next, could you please send her in?" Doctor Franklin said and for the first time Castle saw something close to a smile on the older woman's face.

"Okay." Castle said and then he added almost as an after thought. "How do I make things right with Beckett?"

"Well I don't know her but what do you think you should do?" The doctor questioned back.

"I think I need to talk to Kate." Castle said a moment latter, and then he turned his wheelchair around and headed out of the room. He had no idea what he was going to say to make things right but it was a start, and that was more then he had earlier that morning so maybe things were slowly looking up.

**Hey guys sorry this chapter is so late and so short. I wanted to really get the plot moving but instead all I really gave you was filler. It's filler that I thought needed to happen but I am not very happy with this chapter but I couldn't come up with another way to write it. I wanted this chapter to be longer and on time but I got really busy yesterday and today and I wanted to give you something so here is this late short chapter. Thanks for putting up with my lousy update schedule, you guys are the best and the reason I keep writing. **

**Thank you to everyone who reads, favorites, follows, and reviews this story I am becoming a better writer because of your feedback. Hopefully I will be back to updating five days a week tomorrow.**

**Thanks again for reading.**

**I very big thank you goes out to Caskettfan5 for beta help on this chapter, thank you.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

Agent Cauldwell warned Detectives Ryan and Esposito against saying anything about the case, where they were going, and putting the batteries back into their cellphones as they entered the federal building and quickly headed for the elevator. The three men road up up in the elevator in silence and The detectives watched with some interest as Agent Cauldwell placed several seemingly random objects including what looked like a small hand held radio in the pockets of his suit coat, he then let the two detectives back to the elevator with out saying a word and hit the button for level three of the underground parking garage for the building.

"We will take my car." The special agent said simply as he led the detectives off of the elevator and and into the somewhat dark parking structure. He let them past row after row or standard government issue sedans and sport utility vehicles to a car that stood out from the lot. As special agent Cauldwell walked over and unlocked the driver's side door of a rather scary looking muscle car with a custom dark red paint job Esposito was thinking a little more quickly then his partner.

"Shotgun." Esposito called out an instant before his partner did the same.

"Damn it!" Was the only response Ryan had and with a smug smile on his face Esposito made his way to the front passenger side door while a somewhat dejected Ryan got into the back seat after Cauldwell had moved the driver's seat forward and then climbed in after him.

"It's a 1970 Chevy SS 454." Cauldwell stated bluntly, answering the unasked question that that was hanging in the air as the three men buckled their seat belts, he then added as he turned the key and started the car. "Don't say anything about the case or where we are going until I give you the all clear." The two detectives nodded that they understood and Cauldwell pulled out of the parking structure and into the traffic of the busy New York street.

The first stop they made was at a small store that specialized in mostly used electronics, Ryan and Esposito watched, somewhat puzzled as Cauldwell picked out a few seemingly random objects from the store including an old analog portable radio and a set of screw drivers.

"I think he is getting that stuff to check the car for bugs." Ryan said after a moment of thought, leaning over to his partner, Esposito nodded that he understood.

Ryan's guess proved to be correct as next they pulled into an empty lot that looked like it used to be a garage of some kind or maybe a body shop before a fire had caused the building to be torn down. The sidewalk in front of the lot still sloped down to allow cars to pull into it and that is exactly what special agent Cauldwell did. He then spent just over half an hour waving the radio, the small radio like device he had gotten from his office, and his cellphone over the car. When he was done he pulled the screw drivers from his pocket and went to work. The first thing he did was pull a small object about the size of a quarter out from inside the steering column, next he made his way back and under the car and pulled off a larger object that was about the size of a cellphone that seemed to be held in place by a magnet.

He quickly then got up and dashed passed the two men and ran onto the sidewalk and into the crowd walking passed, first he seemed to in his haste to bump into a businesswoman making her way down the street but Esposito spotted him slipping the small quarter sized object into her coat pocket, next he dashed up behind a taxi cab that had pulled up to the curve to pick up a businessman. He quickly slapped the larger object onto the underside of the taxi and then made his way back to the sidewalk just as it pulled away.

Cauldwell then walked calmly back to the two detectives. "It's okay, we can talk now." He said.

"We are in real trouble here." Ryan observed gravely.

"Yes we are, they had planted an audio bug and a tracking device on my car." Cauldwell confirmed.

"Well at least they will be chasing that cab for a while." Esposito said, trying to look on the bright side.

"Yes and that gives us some time to work." Cauldwell agreed.

"So what is our next move?" Esposito asked.

"We need to find out who is running the Tongs and where he can be found, they are our only lead." Cauldwell stated calmly.

"I have a friend in vice who may be able to help with that." Ryan said and he reached into his pockett and replaced the battery in his cellphone and began to dial a number.

"Good, then we will need somewhere to take him, off the grid." Cauldwell explained and all three of the men felt a chill run down their spines at what the special agent was suggesting, it ran counter to everything they had been trained to do and it didn't escape any of their notice that what they were about to do was what Montgomery had done so many years ago and what had put him in the power of "The Dragon" in the first place. Still needs must when the devil drives and the difference was they were not going to cover up what they where about to do once this was all over and they were only doing this because they had been left with no other choice.

"I know a few run down and empty places where no one will bother us." Esposito said after a few moments of thought. Cauldwell nodded that this was good.

A minute later Ryan returned to the group removing his battery from his cellphone and placing both objects back in his pockett. "Okay the guy who runs the Tongs in New York is a businessman named Ki Zhang Wei and he hangs out at a fancy Chinese food place called The Golden Dragon." The Irish detective reported.

"Great let's get over there." Cauldwell said and the three men piled into the car, none of them liked what they were about to do and they knew it could end with them in jail but that wasn't about to stop them from doing it. The three law enforcement officers were about to break the law in a big way , still at the same time they were about to get some answers and they would no longer be playing defense. They got into the car under no illusions about what the future would hold, everything was about to hit the fan.

**Thank you again to everyone who has been reading and reviewing and following and favoriting. As always you guys are the best and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Another big thank you to Caskettfan5 for Beta work on this chapter. Thanks for catching all my mistakes and making this story better.**


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25**

"I know I shouldn't blame him and he has been through so much but I have lost every friend I had not to mention my boyfriend and all because he couldn't leave this alone." Alexis huffed out frustratedly as she paced back and forth across the office. Doctor Franklin simply nodded and didn't say a word, she knew that some times all you needed to do was let someone vent so that was what she was letting the teenage girl do at the moment. It was clear that she had been through more then anyone her age should have to be through and she was not comfortable talking to her family but she needed someone to listen to her, so that is who the doctor decided to be. "I know he didn't ask for any of this to happen but at the same time how could he have not seen it coming?!" Alexis demanded as she continued to pace the room while running her hand through he red hair, she then turned to face the doctor. "I mean I saw it coming from the first day he started following her around, I knew he was going to get shot, I have been living in fear every time my cell phone rang for the past three years. I saw it coming so why didn't he?!" Alexis almost yelled this last part and then she quickly turned away from the doctor and faced the door leading into the office. "Why couldn't he just stop?" She asked and a tear slid down her cheek.

"It's not easy watching someone you love risk their life." Doctor Franklin said gently. "It's okay to be angry about it, you have to let yourself feel the anger, if you keep it bottled up it will hurt you and those around you."

"But how am I supposed to go on if all I want to do every time I see my dad is slap him and yell at him?" Alexis asked brokenly and she turned to face the doctor. "Also I know he was helping people so how do I have the right to be angry at him for doing that, I mean he saved lives so if I get mad at him for doing that aren't I wishing those people dead?"

"It doesn't work like that." The older woman explained and Alexis slowly sat down in the office chair that was turned away from the desk to face the chair the other woman was seated in. "You are not wishing for anything bad to happen to anyone you just wish we lived in a world where your father didn't have to risk getting hurt in order to help people. You have nothing to feel guilty about."

"Okay." Alexis said after giving what the older woman said some thought. "How do I stop feeling guilty?"

"I want you to say it out loud, I want you to say that you have nothing to feel guilty about." Doctor Franklin instructed.

Alexis took a breath and when she spoke her voice was shaky. "I...have...nothing to feel guilty about."

"Good, try it again." Doctor Franklin said a moment later.

"I have nothing to feel guilty about." The redhead repeated this time more firmly.

"Very good." Doctor Franklin said with a small smile. "I want you to repeat that to yourself every time you have one of these negative thoughts about yourself, okay?"

"Okay." Alexis nodded and then after thinking for a moment she asked another question. "I know this may sound selfish considering everything that is going on but how am I supposed to deal with being here?"

"It's not selfish at all. Your whole life has been thrown into turmoil by something out of your control, it's only natural that you would be a little frightened." Doctor Franklin replied.

"That's not exactly what I meant, I mean this going to sound petty because we are safe here but I am bored and I have a feeling the negative thoughts I am having will take over since I have so much free time." Alexis said as she stood up and started pacing once again.

"That is not an unreasonable fear." Doctor Franklin said and then after giving the matter a few seconds thought she continued. "Maybe you should look for a way to turn this problem into an opportunity."

"What do you mean?" Alexis asked as she turned to face the woman.

"Well at the moment any amount of time spent here cut off from your friends and your normal support system seems overwhelming right?" Doctor Franklin asked and Alexis nodded that this was true so the doctor continued to explain her idea. "But when you get older and you look back on this time it will seem like a comparatively short period of your life so maybe you could try and have some life experiences here that you can't have in New York, the type that will stay with you the rest of your life."

"Life what?" Alexis asked as she gave the doctor a look that seemed to indicate that she was not averse to the general idea, she was just unsure how to apply it to her life.

"Well there are all sorts of things, start looking around and find something that interests you. It should be something you are doing for yourself, something that you are interested in, and that you are doing because you like it." The older woman explained.

"Well There are a lot of animals and birds here that we don't have in New York, and I have never really walked in the woods unless you count some of the trees in central park." Alexis said thoughtfully after she had given the mater a moment's thought.

"That's the spirit." Doctor Franklin said smiling. "The key is to remember that most problems also come with an opportunity and to be open to the new opportunities that life sends your way. I will not pretend it will be easy but if you work at it things never turn out as bad as we think they will in our darkest moments."

"Okay, thanks." Alexis said a moment later and for the first time since the older woman had met her the redhead's mood seemed to lighten a little.

"Well I think that is enough for today, I will seem you in a couple of days and see how you are doing." Doctor Franklin said as she slid her notepad into her briefcase.

"Okay, thanks Doctor Franklin." Alexis said as she turned to leave the office.

"You are welcome and remember you have nothing to feel guilty about and don't let the negative thoughts take root." Doctor Franklin replied and with that she stood up and made her way over to the office door and followed Alexis out of the the office and into the house.

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Richard Castle was very glad he had gotten an all terrain wheelchair at that moment, he had been informed by his still unhappy mother that Kate was in the back yard, so that was where he now found himself, and if he were in any other wheelchair he would be stuck but luckily for him there were not many places his chair could not go.

He had spotted Kate and was about to make his way over to her when he saw something else, and it made his blood run cold and then boil over with rage. Sorrenson, that snake. He knew he was here to make a play for Kate, but he didn't think anyone would be so low as to do so when they knew he was talking to a head shrink that he had set up the appointments with. Well it was time to sort him out, Castle was not about to let this go on. Deep down Castle knew Kate would never cheat on him but the reasonable part of his brain was not the part that was controlling his actions at that moment, at that moment he wanted nothing more then to deck the jerk. By the time he made it over to Sorrenson about ten feet from one of the sheds he had at least come to his senses enough to know that would not be possible in his current state, so he would have to settle for telling the bastard off. That was poor compensation for how rewarding it would have been to feel his fist connect with the rat's eye, but it was yet another one of life's little pleasures that had been denied him because of his condition.

Sorrenson must have heard him coming because he turned around to face the writer. "Hi, Rick how are you doing today?" He asked as if talking to an old friend, the truth was he and Richard Castle would never be friends and he knew it but he saw no reason not to at least try to smooth things over. Still one look at the writer's face told him this had been the wrong approach, he was mad and the attempt at a half hearted, friendly welcome had only made him more angry.

"Listen to me Sorrenson." Castle said sternly and this drew the special agent's full attention and he was about to say something but Castle didn't give him the chance. "I know you came here to win back Beckett but it will not work. She is with me now and if you knew anything about her you would know she would never cheat. I know I don't deserve her but that is the way things have played out, be an adult and deal with it. Your childish attempt to play hero will not get her back." Castle said sternly and his face was turning red.

"Look I am going to tell you what I just finished telling Kate, I am not here to get her back." Sorrenson said and he himself was getting angry. "I could see the last time we had met she had chosen the rich playboy who she had been a fan of for years, I made peace with the fact that I can't compete with that."

"Oh yeah, then why are you out of all the FBI agents out there here?!" Castle demmanded and it wasn't much of a question but Sorrenson answered it any way.

"Because the FBI wanted someone the two of you knew and I was not assigned to anything and I still think of Kate as a friend." Sorrenson explained as he became even more angry.

"You really expect me to believe that you have no interest in Kate when you are sneaking around behind my back?" Castle shot back.

"Kate and I are adults and like it or not we do have history, I was not sneaking around your back and I know you don't trust me but you should at least trust Kate." Sorrenson rebuffed.

This gave Castle pause for a second, but only for a second before he responded. "I do trust her but I don't see why I should trust you."

"Is this a good enough reason?!" Sorrenson demanded and he reached into his pocket and pulled a photo out of his wallet. It was of him standing next to a happy looking woman with red hair, Sorrenson had his arm around her and she was showing off a ring that had a diamond on it. "Her name is Stacy." Sorrenson explained a moment later as he calmed down and held the picture closer to the writer's face so he could get a good look. "She's a high school teacher, she is the best thing that ever happened to me, we are expecting a child is seven months and we are engaged."

This seemed to take the wind right out of Castle's sails and when he spoke next he was calm and quiet. "Oh, I'm sorry." Was all Castle could say and then as the special agent replaced the photo in his wallet Castle looked up at him with a puzzled expression on his face and asked a question. "Why did you take this job? When Merredith was pregnant with Alexis I hovered over her so much she threatened to get a restraining order, I wouldn't think you would want to leave her."

"I didn't." Sorrenson began to explain a moment later. "I worry every day but Agent Shaw is on another job and there was a lot of pressure for me to take this job. It got to the point where they offered me my choice of assignments after this, so I will not have to leave Stacy after she has the baby. I really don't want to repeat the mistakes I made with Kate." The man confessed as he looked away from Castle.

"I see." Castle responded and he was surprised to find himself softening a little on the man who was standing in front of him. They would still never be friends and he didn't like the fact that he was using this case to advance his carrier, but he had been where this man was before, worrying about the book tours he would have to take once Alexis was born and now he could at least understand where he was coming from and they had some common ground. "Well try not to worry, with kids things almost never go as bad as you think they will." Castle said a moment later trying to lighten the mood.

"I just worry I am not ready." Sorrenson said turning to face the writer and Castle could tell it cost him a lot to admit that. "I mean it's not like we were trying and it came as a shock, but now I wouldn't wish it away, I am just not sure how I will handle this. You were lucky, you were ready and your girl seems to have turned out alright, I don't know if I can do that."

"Hey, I wasn't ready either." Castle said a moment later, he didn't know why but he felt the need to reassure the man. "I have no idea how Alexis turned out the way that she did, after everything I put her through and people joke that she is the more adult out of the two of us but it did take a lot of work on my part."

"I wish I was sure I would know what to do when the time comes." Sorrenson replied.

"Well all I can tell you is do your best and don't give up, that is all I ever did." Castle said a moment later.

"Alright, thanks." Sorrenson said as he turned to face Castle and then he added gravely a moment later. "Hey don't tell Kate about this. We both know she tends to put the weight of the world on her shoulders and I don't want her feeling guilty about my being here. This was my choice and I figure it is better to miss a few months now then miss them later and maybe have to hit the road once the baby is born."

"Okay, you got it." Castle said and then added. "Congratulations, Will."

"Thanks, Rick." Sorrenson replied and with that Castle turned his wheelchair around and went off to find Beckett.

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The Golden Dragon was a fancy Chinese restaurant in the best part of what old timers would call China town and while it was true that the Chinese gangs still ran most things here in the modern day and age calling it China town for any other reason didn't make much sense. There were several high rise hotels and apartment buildings around the restaurant as well as many other high class businesses.

As Cauldwell drove himself and detectives Ryan and Esposito down the street he knew they were all bracing themselves for what had to be done, none of them liked it but it was their only shot at closing this case and making it out alive so he saw no reason to feel bad about it. It was at that moment that he spotted a limo pulled out front of the restaurant and a Chinese businessman of average height and weight was being escorted out. "Anyone else get the feeling they were warned we were coming?" Cauldwell asked the car and then added. "Be ready for trouble." The two detectives nodded that they understood and then Cauldwell gunned the engine of his car and pulled it sideways in front of the limo so between his car and a car that was waiting to pull up to the curve behind it the limo was boxed in, and and the detectives jumped out of the car.

"Federal agent, freeze!" Cauldwell yelled loud enough so no one could miss what he said.

"I have nothing to say to you." The older man shouted back, and the four body guards pushed him closer to the limo.

"Mister Wie?!" Cauldwell called out.

"Yes but I told you I have nothing to say to you." The man called back.

"We have a few questions for you and I don't think you want to get into a shoot out with federal agents." Cauldwell advised and at this the man stopped and looked at him. He had a hard piercing gaze that Cauldwell guessed worked well on other gangsters and people who owed him money but it did nothing to Cauldwell and Ryan and Esposito drew their guns and pointed them at the bodyguards, Cauldwell continued. "The last thing you want is the FBI down here so you can come with me and answer my questions or you shoot it out with us and make national headlines, it's your choice."

Wei seemed to consider this for a moment and then he opened his mouth as if he was going to say something but he didn't get a chance, he was cut off by a noise that sounded a little like a car backfiring that echoed against all the buildings and seemed to come from one of the taller buildings in the area. "Sniper!" Esposito shouted and everyone dove for cover. Everyone that is except Wie, his head exploded spewing brains, blood, teeth, and bone all over the sidewalk. "Shit!" Cauldwell cursed, their best lead had just died and they were pinned down by an unseen sniper. Even if they survived this they were now in a life or death battle with no way to win, The Tongs had literally become a dead end and it didn't matter if it was right now or the next day Cauldwell was pretty sure they would be joining Wei soon.

**Well hope you enjoyed that and it was worth the wait, sorry to keep you waiting so long but I should be back on top of things now. To everyone who has commented on spelling mistakes in past chapters, thank you and I am not ignoring you I just have not had time to go in and edit them yet, I hope to do that this wednesday and sunday. Thanks you guys help me be a better writer.**

**Sorry this chapter was a little weak after making you wait so long, things should really pick up in tomorrow's chapter. **

**Thanks again to everyone who favorites, reviews, follows, and reads, you guys are the reason I write, thanks for your support. You guys are the best.**

**Oh and thanks again to Caskettfan5 for your amazing beta work, you are the best.**


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

Kate Beckett turned to face Richard Castle with a small yet sad smile on her face when she heard his wheelchair pulling up beside her.

"Hey." She said greeting her writer. "Her Writer" that was going to take some getting used to after all of these years, but she liked the sound of it in her head.

"It's nice out here." Castle said gently after taking a moment to observe the surroundings and take in a breath of fresh air. Beckett just nodded that she agreed and returned her attention to the woods. Castle looked up at her, trying to etch every detail of the look on her face at that moment into his brain. He had never seen her so peaceful before. It was a completely different side to Beckett that he hoped to see again some day after this was all over. Maybe once they were married he would get a small place in the country, not to live in of course, but just so he could see this look again when they went on vacations. Still that was a long way in the future and he had to remind himself not to get too far ahead. He may have known he wanted to marry her for at least two years, but the relationship was less then a week old and they had a lot of work to do if he didn't want it to end in disaster. So as much as he pained him he calmed himself down and started thinking of the here and now, instead of the far off future. Still he had to admit, at least to himself, that he could not wait for that future to get here. However if he wanted to get there he had to take one thing at a time, so that was what he was going to do starting right now.

Castle hated the idea of disrupting Kate's quiet time and good mood, but he needed to have this conversation now. He needed to do it before he lost his nerve and while he was still pretty sure he knew what he needed to say. So he took a breath and then spoke calmly and carefully. "Kate can we talk?"

"What about?" Beckett asked, turning to face him.

This was going to be harder then Castle thought, but there was no way out but forward so Castle took a breath and pushed ahead. "It's isn't you I am doubting, I don't think you would leave me just because I am in a wheelchair. I know you are not that shallow and you would never break your word."

"So what, you think the only reason I am still here is because I am trapped?!" Beckett demanded angrily, and she raised her voice to a near yell that could be hear echoing off of the trees in the woods.

"No, that is not what I meant at all." Castle said as he ran his hands through his hair, he was completely screwing this up.

"Then what did you mean?" Beckett demanded, fixing him with a stern gaze.

"I have been married twice, and when you add in this." Castle replied as he motioned to his useless legs. "With the fact that I am having panic attacks for no reason I just doubt myself."

"I know that and I told you it doesn't matter, so why are we having this conversation again?" Beckett said and the frustration was showing on her face.

"Because it is going to take me more then one night to work through these issues." Castle explained and now he was the one who was starting to raise his voice. "I need you to know that I do believe you but it will just take a while for me to get past these self doubts. I need you to know that it isn't anything to do with you and there is nothing you can say or do to make this go faster. I need to know that you are okay with that."

"Why wouldn't I be?" Beckett asked, shocked.

"Well it is a lot to put up with." Castle stated and while he seemed to be calming down, Beckett could tell he was still troubled, he was just doing a better job of hiding it. "I do tend to screw up my relationships. I mean Meredith was not my fault, but with Gina I knew she loved me and once I mistook the fact that we worked well together for love, and another time I took advantage of the fact that I knew she still loved me to help ease my own loneliness. Not to mention that while I may have put on a brave face and been flippant about it there were some of my one night stands that at that moment I thought I had a shot at something real with." Castle explained and then his eyes moved away from Beckett's and he looked down at the grass. His voice was full of shame when he next spoke. "The fact is I am not good with relationships. I get ahead of myself, I some times use woman and I am very good at fooling myself into thinking something is real when it is not. I don't trust my own judgment."

"Do you really think I am good with relationships?" Beckett asked and she knelt down in front of Castle so she was eye level with him, not caring that she was getting grass stains on the knees of her pants.

"Well you have a better track record then I do." Castle confessed brokenly, refusing to meet Beckett's gaze.

Beckett then reached out and gently placed her hands on either side of Castle's face and forced him to look at her. "I don't think so." Castle looked at her with disbelief but said nothing so she continued to explain. Castle could tell this was hard for her by her tone of voice so he didn't interrupt, even though he really wanted to. "I knew things were not going to work out with Deming." Beckett began to explain and now she was the one with a hint of shame in her voice. "Will had taught me that I wasn't willing to leave my job and friends behind for a relationship."

"Hey, He shouldn't have assumed you were. He was a jerk." Castle objected.

"Yes he was." Beckett confirmed. "He has a huge ego and he lets it get in the way of doing his job right, but if I am being honest that wasn't what caused the break up. It didn't matter how I felt about him, the fact was up until that moment I didn't let myself see the bad parts of him and when he told me about the offer from the FBI and that he was taking it and he wanted me to come with him. I was looking for another reason to break up. So that was when I finally let myself see them." Beckett confessed. "The real reason I broke up with him was that I didn't want to move, and yes he did spring it on me at the last minute and assume that I would just be willing to move with him but at the time I had myself so fooled into believing I was in love with him that he believed it too."

"I still don't see that it was your fault." Castle grumbled, he hated seeing Kate put herself down like this.

"I am not saying it completely was but the fact is I knew when we started dating that like me he cared about his job and the FBI could decide he was needed somewhere else at the drop of a hat." Beckett explained. "If I am being honest I also knew that we both knew I could do my job in any city in the country. Police departments are always looking for good detectives, so moving wasn't completely off the table."

"Still your dad is in New York and asking you to leave all that when he didn't give you any warning was just wrong." Castle said clenching his teeth. The good vibes he had been getting about the FBI special agent were now long gone. The man was now making Kate feel bad about herself and Castle would not stand for that.

"Yes, of course he was wrong to do that." Beckett agreed but then she added. "But that wasn't why I broke up with him at the time. My point is that I learned something about myself that should have kept me from even getting close to Deming in the first place let alone consider a relationship with him. That was the fact that I was not willing to leave my job for a relationship. Do you have any idea what the NYPD would have done once they found out we were together?"

"I don't have any idea, my guess is it is frowned upon." Castle answered a moment later.

"Oh, it is more then frowned upon." Beckett said with a harsh laugh. "One of us would have been forced to to move to another precinct, and I knew Deming wouldn't transfer, and yet I fooled him and myself into thinking that a real relationship was possible when in my head I knew it was not."

"Love some times make us do strange things." Castle said with a shrug.

"But that is my point." Beckett objected. "I wasn't in love with either of them at all but I still fooled them and myself. At that point deep down I knew I was in love with you and yet I still needed Esposito to point out to me that you were not hanging around to watch me date other guys, and I still hurt Josh by giving him false hope for more then a year."

"Beckett I left it's not your fault." Castle insisted in a pained voice.

"Maybe not completely but it's not completely your fault either." Beckett replied forcefully. "The fact is that we both have a history of screwing things up and you are no worse with relationships then I am. I can assure you that I have all the same self doubts that you have."

"Okay." Castle said a moment later and his voice was soft, it wasn't quite broken, but there was a sadness to it that reached down to the pit of his soul. He hated the fact that Kate didn't see herself for the amazing person she was. Still he understood what she was saying deep down. She had problems too. His heart didn't want him to believe this statement but in his head he knew that he had to if they were going to have any shot at a future together. "So where do we go from here?" He asked at last looking up at her.

"We both work on our problems and we understand that we trust each other but it is going to take time." Beckett said gently. "We understand that it is nothing personal and we have to put up with each other getting things wrong from time to time, Okay."

"Okay." Castle answered a moment later and then he reached out for Beckett, and brought her into a hug that she returned.

After Castle had released her Beckett took a breath and then made one more hard confession. "To the end of making this work I am taking your advise and will talk to Will about setting up some time with the Psychiatrist you are seeing. I don't want to screw this up."

"Thank you, I know how hard that is for you to do." Castle said a moment later.

"It's no problem you are worth it." Beckett said with a small smile.

"Hey, aren't you the one who is always saying my ego doesn't need any inflating? A comment like that could go to a guy's head." Castle responded.

"I think you can handle it just this once." Beckett said playfully.

"Hey, speaking of NYPD policy." Castle said with a worried expression on his face. "Assuming I can return to work in some way, what are we going to do about that situation once we get back to the city?" Castle asked.

"Well assuming I still have my job." Castle got a look on his face as if it was insane to even consider that she wouldn't be welcomed back into the fold, which Beckett ignored. "You are not employed by the NYPD so we are not breaking any rules. They can't forbid me to be in a relationship with a civilian ." Beckett explained.

"And what if you have lost your job because of me?" Castle asked gravely, he didn't like where this could head but he needed to clear the air once and for all. "You said you were not willing to give up your job for a relationship, will things still work out between us?"

"Yes they will." Beckett answered without a moment's hesitation. "The reason my past relationships didn't work out was that I didn't really love those men, and while it will be hard to get used to if I have lost my job I can deal with it because I love you."

Castle looked up at her and his eyes were full of wonder. "I love you too." He replied a moment later. They both smiled at each other, they knew a hard road was ahead, but they also knew that in the end everything would be alright.

**Well there is the much requested Castle/Beckett talk. From here on out they will have issues but things will be a lot smoother for them.**

**Again I would like to thank Caskettfan5 for beta help on all the chapters.**

**All feedback I get is a hug help. I hope you liked this chapter.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**You guys are the best.**


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27**

Detective Esposito's military training took over his actions as he took cover behind Special Agent Cauldwell's car. The first thing he noticed was that two of the Tong bodyguards were hit before they had chance to take cover. One was hit in the chest and the other in the shoulder, the shoulder wound didn't look fatal. Epsosito used the shots to trace the location of the shooter, a second later he was sure it was coming from either the eighth or ninth floor of the hotel directly across the street. He needed more information in order to assess the level of the threat. He risked putting his head up and looking down the street, to his surprise he did not draw fire. Instead two more shots were fired at the bodyguards who were taking cover behind the limo. Still Esposito decided not to press his luck and got back down quickly. His brief look told him two things and both of them were good. One it must have been a rushed job because he didn't see anything on the street that could have acted as a wind gage, that was a tool most snipers would not go into battle without. Two the lack of fire he had taken told him that this sniper was most likely working without a spotter. The effectiveness of snipers was greatly reduced without a spotter. The sniper most likely had tunnel vision at this point and was not seeing anything outside of his scope. This gave Esposito a limited window to take action, he was the closest to the hotel so he decided to take a chance.

Esposito took a breath to steady his nerves and then he jumped up and dashed across the street and didn't stop until he was pressing himself flat against the brick walls of the hotel. He heard Ryan call after him followed by two more shots. Esposito's military training was now fully in control and before he checked to ensure that his friend had not been shot, he looked up at the hotel that towered above him. He saw a slight gleam in the fourth window from the right on the eighth floor. It was only there for a moment but it told him exactly where the sniper was.

Esposito then looked across the street and was relieved to see that Ryan was alright, but he and everyone else was pinned down by three shots that rang out at that instant. Esposito knew he was on his own and he had a whole hotel to cover with who knows how many hostiles. He hoped that the fact that there was no spotter meant he was dealing with a single hostile, but he could not be sure of that. What was more there was only one of him and he had no idea what his enemy looked like. Add to that the fact that between elevators, fire escapes, and stairs this guy had a ton of ways to get away and Esposito knew he would have to be beyond lucky if he was going to take this guy down.

Another shot rang out. That was when Esposito got an idea, if the guy was still tunnel vision then there was a chance he was not aware Esposito was here and he could take the bastard while he wasn't looking. Esposito's training told him that the current turn of events would only last a few seconds more so he had to move right away if he didn't want to lose this guy.

Esposito dashed into the hotel as her heard Ryan call out after him again followed by another gun shot.

Esposito didn't have time to look back, he had to act fast. He dashed into the hotel and when a hotel employee tried to stop him his flashed his badge without slowing down and dashed through the door at the back of the lobby that opened up onto the stairs. He took the stairs three at a time and after what felt like a life time he finally reached the eighth floor. As he opened the door and walked down the hall he carefully checked every corner and angle. If he got ambushed now this whole trip would be for nothing.

The sounds of the gunshots were much louder on this floor then they were on the street and they seemed to have driving all the guests into hiding. Esposito slowly and quietly approached the room the gunshots were still coming from. He wondered if Ryan was okay, but he couldn't let that cloud his thinking. He saw that the door to the hotel room was closed and locked with a do not disturb sign hanging from the doorknob. He crept on the door taking care to be as quiet as a mouse. He took a minute to steady his nerves and prepare himself for the upcoming fight. Once he was in the right head space he took a breath and sprang into action.

Esposito delivered two swift kicks to the door and he heard the wood of the door frame crack on his second and the door flew open as it sent splinters of wood flying everywhere. Esposito then quick as a flash jumped back and went prone against the hall wall to shield himself from the response he knew was coming. Less then a second later Esposito counted off seven shots that were fired by a pistol. The first four were fired at the door while the last three went right through the drywall that Esposito was leaning against, with the last bullet coming out less then a foot from his right arm.

Esposito then quickly leaped into action. With his pistol drawn he he spun off of the wall and into the doorway of the hotel room. That was when he first lay eyes on his opponent and he knew he was in trouble. He was a big man and looked to be well trained, he had a cold unworried professionalism about him. Esposito guessed that he must be ex special forces. This was not good. The big man squeezed off two more shots and it was only the fact that Esposito stepped to the right the instant he was inside the room that saved him.

Esposito was about to return fire when the big man charged at him. Being in such close quarters Esposito knew that relying on his gun would be a rookie mistake so he returned his gun to his holster and prepared to fight, and it was not a moment too soon.

The big man opened with a powerful flying kick to Esposito's mid section, this winded the detective for less then a second. Esposito then tried to sweep the big man's legs, but he easily side stepped this move. Whoever this guy was he was good. The big man then went for Esposito's head with his right fist but this time Esposito was the one to duck out of the way. Esposito then kicked the big man in the stomach, this was the first blow he had landed in the fight.

Esposito's victory was short lived as the big man grabbed his leg with both hands and used the momentum of Esposito's kick to toss him to the floor. Esposito landed on the floor head first and for a moment he saw stars. He regained his focus just in time for the big man to dash past him and out into the hall. Esposito jumped up and drew his service weapon and rushed out into the hall in hot pursuit. This turned out to be a mistake. The big man was not fleeing the scene, he was just waiting on the other side of the door and when Esposito dashed out with his gun drawn the big man grabbed Esposito's wrists in a powerful grip. He then brought up his right knee and jabbed Esposito twice in the kidney.

This was not good, Esposito was losing this fight. His back was then shoved against the wall, hard as he tried to break free of the big man's grasp. He was completely out matched and that was when things got even worse. He thought he became aware of a third man entering the fight, this man seemed to come out of nowhere. Now Esposito was out matched and out numbered, he had to find a way to even the odds fast. He tried to get a look at this new opponent, but all he could be sure of was that he thought he saw some white hair.

The next thing Esposito knew the big man had brought his knee up and made contact with Esposito's face. Esposito doubled over in pain and he heard the crack of his nose breaking. A second later he tasted blood, his own blood pouring into his mouth. This distractions allowed the big man to wrench Esposito's gun out of his hand and toss it to the side, Esposito put his head down and tried to charge the big man but he easily grabbed Espisoto's head in his arms and kneed him in the stomach. This caused Esposito to fall to the floor, then the man brought his foot down on on Esposito's head and just when Esposito thought he heard some movement from the third man, his world went black.

Esposito was awakened about five minutes later by both pain and a banging sound. He was shocked to find that not only was he not dead but he was still in the hotel hallway. His world was full of pain, he felt like he was a punching bag, but he was alive. He reached up and touched his nose and winced in pain, there was no doubt that it was broken and it was still bleeding a little. He seemed to be safe for the moment but he had no idea why. Then there was that banging sound, he decided to try and find out what it was. It seemed to be coming from the hotel room, the door was still open.

Gingerly Esposito stood up, it hurt to walk but he slowly began limping down the hall. He was then that he remembered his service weapon and was shocked to discover that it was laying on the floor beside where he had been knocked out. That had not been where the big man had tossed it, Esposito was sure of what. He had no idea what was going on here. Painfully Esposito bent down and picked up his gun and returned it to his holster. He then limped towards the hotel room, that was still the source of the banging.

When Esposito finaly entered the room with his gun drawn what he saw both shocked and confused him. The big man was handcuffed by his left hand to the metal headboard of the bed. He looked a little worse for wear and had bruises all over his face. The banging sound was the big man trying to break free of his bonds, but the metal of the headboard was strong and wouldn't give. When he looked up and saw Esposito pointing a gun at him, he froze. Even with all his training he knew that at the moment this was a fight he couldn't win. The man didn't say anything and as Espisoto advanced closer he saw a large bloodstain of the bed's comforter. Looking up Esposito saw that the big man's hand was bandaged where his right hand thumb should have been. The thumb was missing and Esposito had seen enough field dressings in his day to know that the bandage had been applied quickly to stop any bleeding.

"Your friend did that, after he jumped me from behind." The big man said answering Esposito's silent question. What was going on here? Who was that man? Why did he take the thumb?

Before Esposito had time to ponder these mysteries he heard footsteps outside of the room, coming down the hall. He took his weapon and spun around, pointing it at the door. He was just in time to see two men enter the room. To his relief it was his partner Detective Kevin Ryan and Special Agent Micheal Cauldwell. They must have made their way across the street when the shooting stopped and been searching the hotel.

"Esposito, Thank god." Ryan said with relief, he had clearly been worried.

"Who's this?" Cauldwell said coldly as he nodded at the big man in the bed.

"Our sniper." Esposito replied a second later. "I didn't take him down."

"Then who did?" Ryan asked puzzled.

"I don't know." Esposito answered honestly. "This guy beat me to a pulp and when I woke up he was tied to this bed and missing a thumb."

"Interesting." Cauldwell said as he rubbed his chin.

"Be careful this guy is really good." Esposito warned as Cauldwell advanced towards the bed. "I wouldn't uncuff him from the bed until you have both of his hands and his legs cuffed." Esposito was not about to take any chances.

"Well whoever this stranger was at least he left us the rifle so we can tie this guy to the murder." Ryan said as he entered cop mode and made his way over to the open window, the rifle was laying on the floor in front of the window.

"Yeah that is good news." Esposito said as he rubbed his throbbing head, in truth he was too sore at the moment to care about making a case that would stand up in court.

Cauldwell then butted in. "Come on, we will fix you up in a minute detective." He said addressing Esposito. "But the cops will be here any minute and we can't risk this guy vanishing or getting killed, we need to get him out of here quick."

Ryan and Esposito nodded that they understood and they quickly helped the special agent bind the big man's hands and feet with their cuffs. The big man said nothing but he was smart enough to not offer anything beyond passive resistance against the three armed men. Esposito saw in the man's eyes a coldness that told him this man would not break easily, still they had no choice they had to break him. Esposito winced with every step as they walked out of the room. He took his mind off of the pain by thinking about the case. Who was this sniper? Who was the stranger who seemed to be on their side? How much danger were they all in now? Why had the stranger taken the big man's thumb? Was it to send a message? If so to whom?

All of these questions and more ran through Esposito's head as he Ryan, Cauldwell, and the big man made their way down the fire escape so as not to be seen. He and Ryan then placed the big man in the back seat of Special Agent Cauldwell's car with Rayn sitting on the big man's right hand side and Esposito on his left. They drove away and had just left the block as the first police cars pulled up to the hotel.

Esposito noted that it should not have taken the cops so long to show up to this call of shots being fired. Whoever they were fighting must have paid off or ordered the NYPD not to respond to any reports of shots being fired on this street. It must have taken them this long to figure out things had not gone completely according to plan. This caused Esposito to get a sinking feeling in his gut. They now knew for sure that they could not trust anyone on the NYPD. Things were getting worse all the time and yet they were still alive and they seemed to have a silent partner in their fight. Still they could not count on this guy, whoever he was, saving them the next time they got into trouble. They were still on their own, but at least they were still in the fight.

**Hope you liked this chapter. Sorry it didn't advance the plot more.**

**Again I would like to thank Caskettfan5 for Beta help.**

**Thanks to everyone who reads and reviews. You guys are great.**


	28. A Note from the author

**A note from the author**

** Hey I just wanted to drop this quick line to let you know new chapters are coming it's just that over the weekend there was a life and death crisis in my family. I am sorry but it has kept me from writing just as things were heating up, I am still writing when I have five minutes free and thanks to Caskettfan5 I am still editing past chapters.**

**This should all be cleared up by next week, sorry to leave you hanging like this but I just have been busy because of this crisis.**

**Thank you all for all of your feedback and thank you all for not giving up despite the delay. You guys are the reason I write.**

**Thanks for your support and hanging in there with me.**

**Matthew G. Given**


	29. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

Cauldwell drove the two detectives and their prisoner around the busy New York City streets for just over an hour to ensure they were not followed. Early in this drive they made one stop on the insistence of detective Esposito, it was at a drug store. Detective Esposito ran in and purchased a rather effective sleep mask, when he returned to the car he placed it over the eyes of their prisoner, whose name they had yet to learn. Esposito knew that the man sitting between himself and detective Ryan would most likely not break, he was trained too well. Still if they had any chance of breaking him they would have to take away his sense of control and key to that would be to confuse him as to his exact location and take away any hope he had of escape. So he had bought a sleep mask that blocked out ninety-nine point seven percent of all light so the big man could not see where they were going. It wasn't perfect and it would not in and of itself cause a man like this to panic, but it was a start.

It was while they had stopped at the drug store that detective Ryan had placed a pay phone call to his girlfriend Jenny. He knew it was a risk but he also knew that she would have called his cellphone about half a dozen times since he removed the battery. He also knew that if he didn't come home on time tonight she would start to panic and call the station and if Gates sent out a search party that was an even bigger risk. They now knew that whoever they were hunting had people working in the FBI and the NYPD and these people would be looking for them. Having an official search party running around would just make it easier for the paid off cops and agents to find them, so it the best idea was to call Jenny and make sure she would not panic.

The call did not go smoothly. Jenny was already worried about Ryan because of the number of missed calls and then news had broken about shots being fired in china town. The media didn't seem to know who was involved exactly and all they could report was that one man was dead at the scene and two others were wounded. Speculation was running wild, one day after a car bomb had gone off in another part of town now there was a shooting that looked to be the work of a sniper who had vanished into thin air. Terrorism was a word everyone was just barely steering clear of until all the facts came in. The media had clearly been asked not to start a panic but that could not stop viewers from putting two and two together. Viewers who knew a little more, like Jenny, were very worried indeed. Ryan had been careful not to give her too many details about the case they were working. He believed it would keep Jenny more safe. Still she had worked out enough on her own to know that Ryan was right in the middle of this trouble, whatever it was. It took Ryan a few minutes to calm her down and assure her that he was okay, he lied and said he wasn't at the shooting. Ryan felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, he had never lied to Jenny before, he had withheld facts, but never lied outright to her. Still it seemed like the only way to calm her down. He assured her he was fine but he would be working late because of the shooting and his cellphone had died so she shouldn't worry or call after him when he didn't come home. They both said "I love you" and Ryan thought he could detect the hint of tears in Jenny's voice when she said it but before he could do anything about it she had hung up. When Ryan returned to the car his mood was far more somber then it had been before he had made the call.

At last they reached their destination, and it was none too soon for anyone in the car. The building they had arrived at was an old condemned apartment building. In its day it had been a solid building but that day was long past and now only a few strung out drug addicts stayed in the deserted structure. It was also in a part of town where both Ryan and Esposito knew from hard experience that people minded their own business and didn't call the cops when they saw or heard strange things. This was a big selling point for the location to the three men who were now off the grid and had both the NYPD and the FBI hunting them. Another selling point was that it had an old solid concrete basement with lots of large and strong metal pipes for the heating and water system that the big man could be handcuffed to. The basement also only had one exit and it was a solid metal door at the top of a creaky wooden staircase. Esposito nearly fell down the stairs as he and Ryan dragged the still blindfolded big man down the steps. Cauldwell joined the two detectives after he had parked his car behind the building where it could not be seen from the street.

The room, if it could even be called that. Was an old basement that was full of filth and mold. The place smelled like death and there were rats and bugs everywhere. The only light came from a small filthy window that looked out just at street level. No one in their right minds would want to spend a second longer then they needed to in this place.

Esposito found an old water pipe that ran just below the ceiling, and after he pulled on it with his full body weight to ensure that it would not break or come loose, he uncuffed the big man's left hand and looped the cuffs over the pipe and then recuffed the man's hands. At first the man resisted and tried to get away when he felt the cuffs loosen, but Ryan was ready. The instant the big man moved Ryan brought his right knee up with all of his force and slammed it into the man's side, what followed was the unmistakable crack of at least one rib breaking. The big man didn't let the pain show on his face but he did stop fighting just long enough for Esposito to recuff him. This left him standing on his tip toes, still blindfolded and hanging from the pipe. The three men exchanged nervous glances, they knew that any man who was trained not to give into the pain of a rib breaking would not be easy to crack. Still he was their only lead so they couldn't let him know that they did not feel in control of the situation.

The three men stepped forward, Esposito was the first to speak.

"Today is your lucky day, you tried to kill two cops but we are not interested in you." Esposito tried to sound cocky.

"Yeah we are only interested in whoever ordered the hit. Today you are a small fish and since you have not been arrested yet we can toss you back into the sea, all we need in exchange is the name of the man behind this all." Ryan finished his partner's thought.

"Screw you!" The big man replied spitting at them, however since he was still blindfolded the gob of spittle missed all three men. "I was asleep in my hotel room when this guy burst in, beat me up, took my thumb, handcuffed me to the bed, and then you guys showed up and kidnapped me!"

"Hey don't treat us like fools!" Esposito injected firmly, he knew this was a cover story that could get them all in a lot of trouble but he couldn't let the big man know that he was worried. "We know it was you and we have the rifle."

"With your prints all over it." Ryan pointed out.

"You forced me to put my prints on it after you kidnapped me!" The big man insisted. "You guys and your families are going to get what is coming to them!" He then added with an evil grin.

At this both Ryan and Esposito lashed out but Esposito literally beat Ryan to the punch, slamming his fist straight into the big man's nose, there was a loud crack and then blood began to stream down his face but he didn't react.

"You think this is a game." Esposito said through clenched teeth. "We know this is all out war and we know you were in the special forces so you are trained not to talk. Here is the thing, I was in the special forces too. I have the exact same training, and I will break you. No one knows you are here with us, so we can beat you to death and leave you here to rot and no one will ever know."

This whole time Cauldwell had been standing back and observing the two detectives and not making a sound. Now he stepped forward and spoke in a calm reasonable tone. "Or you can tell us what we want to know and be on your way."

"You really think good cop bad cop will work on me?" The big man fired back.

"No, we simply think you were trained to survive." Cauldwell replied, remaining calm. "You were trained to go through this sort of thing for your country, not money. The guy who hired you may be powerful but he has left too large a body count behind, he is going down. You are just a gun for hire and can remain completely out of this. You have to ask yourself, are you being paid enough to go through all of this and go down with your boss?" Because if you don't help us that is exactly what will happen and then you will not get to enjoy one cent of that money."

The reinforce the point Esposito then punched the man in the side side with all of his might, he landed his punch right on the rib Ryan had broken and this time the man did scream out in pain.

"Even if I told you, I would be dead in a day. You can't bring him down you are all dead!" The big man yelled out.

"Well then let's start with something easier, who was the man who took your thumb? I can't believe you are loyal to him." Cauldwell asked, remaining calm.

"I don't know, some third party. I have never seen him before, he wasn't on the list!" The big man cried out after Esposito landed another punch on his side.

"What list?" Ryan injected.

"Oh there is a list." the big man responded coldly and wicked smile grew across his face, he clearly enjoyed being back in control. "You shouldn't play with dragons because they will burn everything you know and love. He isn't taking any chances and everyone you may have talked to about the case is on the list. Including that little bitch you are engaged to, Detective Kevin Ryan."

Ryan at this it was Ryan who flew into a rage and he landed not one, not two, but three punches on the big man before Esposito could pull him back.

"Hey!, he's no good to us dead!" Esposito pointed out.

Ryan seemed to calm down for a moment and then his face went white as a sheet as what the man had just said sunk in. "Jenny" He blurted out brokenly and then he turned and dashed up the stairs with Esposito hot on his tail, leaving Cauldwell alone with the big man.

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Dinner at the safe house passed pleasantly enough. Castle had a firm talk with his mother earlier in the evening and since then she had not said one word of complaint about the lack of wine with dinner. Both Kate and Jim had insisted that wine was okay but Castle didn't see any need to tempt a man who was in a stressful situation and had relapsed less then two days ago. From his wilder party days in high school and college he had known his share of people who later had to go into rehab and he had never understood why if you cared about someone you would taunt them with the fact that you could still use the very thing that had nearly destroyed them. After his talk with Martha he had enlisted Kelly's help in quietly dumping every bottle of wine down the sink while Kate and Jim were busy.

Jim had gotten the shakes and thrown up a couple of times after lunch and Kate had spent most of the afternoon looking after her father in a way she had not had to in years. It was clear this had filled Jim with a deep sense of shame and he had tried to stay in his room closed off from everyone but Kate had insisted that he join them, in the end she had managed to pick his spirits up by teasing him about how he should spend some more time getting to know the man she was "married" to. In the end he had ended up making her blush when he teased her about marrying her highschool crush. In that moment it was as if all the years previous and the damage they had done had melted away, like snow in the spring. For a brief moment it was like Joanna Beckett had never died and Kate Beckett was a carefree teenage girl being teased by her father. The moment didn't last of course, because in a fallen world perfect moments never do, but it was a sweet reminder of what had been and for Kate it was a glimpse of what she could have in her own life if things worked out between her and Castle. For an even briefer moment she wondered how she would react if she ever had a daughter of her own, when that girl found a man she loved, but she pushed that aside.

Jim's mood was lightened even more during dinner when Castle mentioned that after a google search on the painfully slow computer, He made a special point of mentioning that he had no idea how people stuck on dial up still existed in the modern world, that he had found the surrounding area was full of good fishing for both fresh water and salt water fish. He then went on to explain how he had always wanted to learn to fish when he was a boy but since he didn't have a father that had never happened. This seemed to wound Martha a little so he then piped in observing that there wasn't much use for fishing for a kid growing up in New York city and if he hadn't spent his childhood the way he did he never would have become the rich, cocky, crime solving, writer everyone knew and loved. This caused Beckett to role her eyes and the mood instantly lightened. Castle went on to explain that the only reason he had ever wanted to go fishing was because of The Andy Griffith show, he had always thought Oppie and Andy had a great relationship, but that was fiction not real life.

Jim perked up even more when later on after the conversation had drifted this way and that Castle had mentioned that he wanted to rent a boat and at least try some salt water and maybe even some fresh water fishing as long as they were there.

After dinner Martha insisted on cleaning up. This surprised everyone since Martha normally made a mess and left everyone else to clean it up. However Castle could see what was behind it, it was clear his mother had decided that Jim was okay and now felt guilty about raising such a fuss over her son insisting that there would be no wine with dinner so she was trying to make amends and hoping to get some time to talk to Jim one on one about both of their children.

After Kelly and Beckett had helped Castle use the toilet, he and Beckett decided to take a walk in the back yard. For the first time in days things seemed peaceful and ideal. The sun was just setting and the soft breeze carried with it the soothing scent of the woods and the sound of insects.

Things became so peaceful and Beckett felt content for the first time she could remember, and as she looked down at the man beside her in his wheelchair she suddenly surprised herself by admitting to herself that this was what she wanted, even if she could never go back to the NYPD and do the thing she loved she could still be happy. She would miss her job but if worse came to worse she knew she could be happy, and the way he was looking at her gave her the feeling that she was the only person in the world who could make him happy. It was a scary and powerful feeling but it also brought something of a peace with it, now that she had worked it all out in her own head. It was then that she found herself speaking without thinking, something she almost never did before Castle came into her life.

"About last night, I want you to know that I see this ending the same way you do." She said lovingly.

"What?" Castle asked clearly shocked and for a moment Beckett was so shocked that she considered taking it back but then she looked into his eyes and saw love mixed with hope and fear and she knew she couldn't take it back.

"I still have a lot of work to do on myself before I will be ready." She explained gently and showing more calm on the outside then she was feeling on the inside. "But if we get back to New York."

"When we get back to New York." Castle insisted, he was not about to consider the chance that they would not come out of this all right, this caused Beckett to smile before she continued.

"When we get back to New York" Beckett corrected herself. "I want to marry you sooner rather then later." There it was out in the open, no other path was open except forward.

"Kate, are you sure?" Castle asked looking up at her with understanding in his eyes and she could tell he was trying not to let her see how hopeful he was. "We have only been together a couple of days and I don't want you to think that you have to rush for me, I want to do this right." He stated calmly.

"Yeah, but as you said we have known each other for three years and we nearly froze to death together, plus we are not getting any younger. I don't really want to wait." Beckett explained, if she was going to marry this man she saw no reason to hide anything from him any more even though that was her first instinct.

"Wow." was all Castle could gasp out, his voice just below a whisper. "I think you have just made me the happiest guy on earth." He said smiling up at her, and it was the biggest smile she had ever seen on his face. Beckett was about to lean down and kiss when he puzzled her but pushing her away. She then saw the reason, running up behind her was his daughter, Alexis.

"Hey guys, you have to come quick." She whispered excitedly.

"What is it?" Castle asked.

"Just come quickly and keep your voices down." Alexis whispered and she led them off to the right. About a minute latter she directed their attention in the direction of the wood and there about thirty feet in front of them they saw a female deer and three young spotted deer grazing peacefully at the edge of the woods. "You see?" Alexis asked excitedly, she had never seen deer in the wild in person before.

"Yeah, I see, Pumpkin." Castle replied and he watched the deer and his daughter's reaction to them with awe and in that moment Castle thought he knew what a perfect moment felt like. Kate put her hand in his and they just stood and sat there quietly watching the deer for a peaceful moment that seemed to stretch on forever, it was hard to believe in that moment that anyone anywhere had any problems.

Still as has been said, in a fallen world perfect moments do not last forever and this one was shattered by a loud human voice coming from the house that caused the deer to look about nervously and then dash off back into the woods. The voice belong to Jim Beckett and he sounded urgent. "Rick, Kate You need to see this!" He yelled.

Castle and Beckett exchanged a worried look and then turned and headed into the house. When they made it into the screened in porch they found that the Tv was tuned into a news broadcast from one of the national networks, Jim didn't say a word instead he directed their attention to the TV.

"Recapping our top story, today there seems to have been yet another terrorist attack in New York city." The female news anchor read over footage of a taped off crime scene on a street in what looked to be china town. "This one claimed the lives of three Chines men and it is not known what if any connection this has to other attacks in the past week. The Mayor has issued a statement asking the public to call in any tips they may have but urging them to remain calm. The FBI says that so far they have not found a connection between these three attacks but it seems clear that with two sniper attacks and a car bombing New York city is facing a pattern of violence the likes of which has not been seen fine 9/11. In related news the NYPD is asking for the public's help in locating two of their own. Detectives Javier Esposito and Kevin Ryan..." As the the news caster said this file photos of the two detectives flashed up on the screen and Beckett let out a gasp. "Were last seen responding to the sniper attack but have not been seen since. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and their families."

Beckett turned to Castle and there was fire in her eyes and he could tell she was panicked. "Castle they have Ryan and Epsosito, We have to go back!" She yelled out and a tear ran down her cheek.

"Katie, that is just what these people want to draw you out into the open, They will kill you if you go back!" Jim insisted.

Kate turned to face her father and there was grim determination in her eyes. "I don't care." She said firmly. "I can't let them die while I sit here and do nothing, I have to at least try to find them. The rest of you need to stay here, but I am going back to New York." With that she brushed the tears and panic from her eyes and she walked out of the room before anyone could say anything. She was sure she her father was right and she was going to her death, but she couldn't do anything else so she wasn't going to let herself worry about that. Kevin and Javi were her partners and they were only in trouble because of her so if laying down her own life would save theirs it was something she would gladly do. In truth truth she had known this was the price she was always going to have to pay in exchange for answers to this case, and now it was time to pay the piper.

**Hey sorry it has been so long since I updated. One thing after another kept coming up and disrupting my train of thought, however you will be happy to know the crisis in my family that kept me from being able to focus on writing is over and it turned out better then anyone hoped. Praise the Lord for that.**

**So I am now back to regular updates and they will come on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. I am taking an extra day off now so I have more time to work on my novel. Sorry this chapter didn't move the plot forward much, I know it was not worth the multi month wait.**

**Oh and don't worry if the show ends before this story does I will not stop posting updates. In my mind fan fiction exists outside of the media that created it and doesn't end just because the series does.**

**If anyone wants to know my thoughts on the show ending I will put it simply. I have gotten the same feeling from the last two seasons of Castle that I got watching season seven of Star Trek TNG. To me it seems like the writers are out of ideas and they are repeating old plots or just pulling any insane twist that shouldn't work in the real world out of thin air to keep things going. I know this may sound harsh to some but I think it's time for the series to end, I am grateful for what the writers and creators have done and I respect them but I think the show has lost it's way. What drew me into the show in the first place was the idea of someone who was used to working in the world of fiction with all of it's over the top crazy stuff running into the real world. While I know Castle was always fiction still things like mind wiping drugs that only take out certain memories, people being invisible suits, and traveling to alternate dimensions is the sort of thing that should only happen in the crazy world of Castle's books and not the "real" world of the 12th precinct. I know I will get flack for this since I know a lot of people love those episodes and I know my own story doesn't take place in the "real" world but I think it does take place in what used to be the "real" world of the show. Lately I feel like the real world is more insane then anything that Rick could come up with for his books and when Kate rolls his eyes at one of his insane ideas about the case she is no longer reacting as a real person would, after everything that has happened in the past few seasons her dismissing any of Castle's ideas as too out there just makes her look stupid and like she doesn't remember last week's case.**

**In short I would rather have the show go out with a good series final at the end of this season(Ala All good Things)instead of continuing to go down the path it is going down for another couple of seasons. I know not everyone will agree with me but that is how I personally feel.**

**Any way after that long rant, thanks to anyone who stuck with me and a special shout out goes to Caskettfan5 who has continued to lift up my spirits with Pms and editing my past chapters. The proof read and corrected Chapters should be up tomorrow.**

**Thanks for sticking with me and thanks again for any and all feedback, it is a big help.**

**Thanks once again to Caskettfan5 for helping edit this chapter.**

**Oh and I am sorry if I upset anyone or anyone thinks I am attacking the makers of the show, I am not. I am just trying to explain why I personally would be fine with the show ending this season that is all.**

**Thank you all for your kind reviews and other feedback, you guys are the best.**


	30. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29**

"Beckett, Wait!" Castle called out as he followed the determined former detective into the main house as she made her way towards the front door. "Kate!" He called out and pleading could be heard in his voice, this got her attention. He never called her Kate unless it was important, she turned to face the writer in the wheelchair.

"Castle, I'm sorry." She said." And there was true sadness in her eye, but along with that was a hardness and determination. "I know it seems like I am making the same stupid mistakes over again but Ryan and Esposito have put their lives on the line for both of us and they would come if we were in trouble." Castle looked up at her and nodded that he understood, but he still looked somewhat lost so Beckett continued to explain gently but firmly. "If I don't do something then I wouldn't be the woman you love."

"You are right." Castle agreed. This shocked Beckett, she was expecting a real fight on her hands. She was not prepared for her partner to agree with her. "We can't just stand, or in my case sit here." This got a weak smile from Beckett, even now he could find something funny, that was so true to form. "What I was going to say." The writer explained calmly. "Was that we shouldn't go off half cocked, we need to come up with a plan."

"But Ryan and Esposito are out there in trouble." Beckett objected, and for the first time there was a hint of panic on her face.

"I know." Castle replied, forcing himself to remain calm. "But if we had not taken the time to come up with a plan we would have never gotten them out of that warehouse alive."

To this Beckett nodded that she understood but then added. "The trouble is this time we don't know where they are or even who has them, and it will take too long."

"It will take hours to get to New York, if they are even still in the city. So it can't hurt to take a few minutes to try and work out who we are dealing with and go from there." Castle explained and before Beckett could say anything another male voice broke in.

"He is right you know, Kate." The voice belonged to Will Sorenson, Beckett and Castle reacted with surprise. They were so caught up in their own conversation that they had some how missed the FBI agent entering from the back door and walking up behind Castle. "I think this is a stupid idea, but I know I can't stop you so you at least need to go in with some idea of what you are up against." He explained before Castle or Beckett could say anything.

'But what do we know?" Beckett asked, frustrated. There was nothing she hated more then hitting a dead end in a case, and here it was personal.

"We must know something, or else why would the guy behind this be putting so much effort into coming after you. We know he let people who knew who he was go for years without doing anything because he felt safe, we must know something that scares him and we have just not put all of the pieces together." Castle explained, he ignoring Sorenson for the moment but secretly he was glad to have some backup who could walk while dealing with Kate.

"Okay." Beckett relented quietly, taking both Castle and Sorenson by surprise. 'We do what we always do. We work the facts of the case. We have made it with less." She said echoing words the man she was looking down at had once said to her.

"Okay, give me a minute to get the computer in the study hooked up to the internet and have everyone, including your father meet us inn the office. I think the more people we have looking at this the better a chance we have of putting the pieces together." Castle instructed and Beckett nodded that she understood.

"I think I have a better idea." Sorenson interrupted, drawing both the former detective and the writer's attention to him for the first time since he had entered the conversation. "Have everyone meet me down in the shed, Trust me, you will like this idea." He explained and then he turned and quickly left the room leaving Castle and Beckett to go talk to their respective relatives.

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"Kevin, hold on man!" Esposito called out to his best friend and partner as he followed him to the big creaky, old front doors of the building. Kevin didn't seem to hear him so Esposito reached out and grabbed the other detective's left arm, this got a reaction.

"Let go of me!" Ryan blurted out through clenched teeth and when Epsosito didn't obey, the Irish detective surprised them both by swinging a punch at his best friend. The blow didn't connect but it did cause Esposito to release his grip and Ryan dashed out of the front door. Espsito was right on his tail and ran at him from behind, this time he didn't take any chances and he tackled his friend to the sidewalk just in front of the steps.

"Let me up!" Ryan yelled, he had been taken by surprise and tackled from behind so he couldn't get himself free.

"Not going to happen, Bro." Esposito said, fighting to remain calm. If you go to Jenny or use your phone you will give away our position to every dirty cop, fed, and assassin in the city. That will not do you or Jenny any good."

"I can't let anything happen to her, and do you really think another shooter hasn't been given the job since that guy vanished." Ryan yelled, and even though he could not see his face Esposito could tell his friend was panicked and there were tears in his eyes.

"I know that, hell by this point the entire NYPD is most likely out looking for us." Esposito said with pain in his voice, he hated doing this to his best friend and he had no idea how the man he had pinned to the ground must feel, but he also knew he couldn't let him up until he saw reason. "That is what this guy is counting on, he wants us all dead. The only way we stand a chance is by bringing him down."

"How do we do that?!" Ryan demanded, still fighting to get away but Epsosito wasn't letting him.

"I don't know, but" Before Esposito could finish the thought the horrifying sound of a gunshot could be heard coming from the direction of the building they had just exited. This caused Esposito to turn his head in the direction of the sound. Ryan took advantage of the moment and elbowed him in the face. Ryan then scrambled to his feet and dashed off down the street. Esposito's first instinct was to go after his partner, but the army had trained him to respond to a threat before personal concerns, so that is what he did.

Esposito drew his service weapon and made his way back into the building, and down into the basement. He carefully cleared every step as best he could on his own, this meant that it took him about two minutes to make it down to the basement and when he did the sight he was met with made his blood run cold.

The big man was gone and a few feet in front of where he had been cuffed Special Agent Cauldwell lay face down with a large pool of blood leaking out from under him. Esposito checked that the big man was not waiting in the shadows and then rushed over and turned Cauldwell over on his back. The man gasped in pain and Esposito could see he had been gut shot, and it looked bad. He began applying pressure to the wound.

"Hang on!" Esposito shouted, and with one hand he searched his pocket for his cellphone and battery.

"Cauldwell looked up at Esposito through hazy eyes and the detective could tell he was having trouble focusing on him. "Made two rookie mistakes." He gasped out.

"Just hang on, don't try to talk I am getting help." Esposito instructed.

"I forgot that it is easy for someone with training to get a hand that doesn't have a thumb out of cuffs, and I turned my back on him." He rasped out. "Has my gun."

"It's doesn't matter, just hang on." Esposito barked out but it was clear the man below him was fading fast.

"Make sure my daughter is taken care of and she knows I love her." Cauldwell said as he released a last brieth. Esposito was about to instruct him to hang on once again but the man on the floor didn't draw another breath. Esposito had worked with death all of his adult life, but that didn't make this any easier.

"Shit!" He barked out and in that moment he had no idea what to do. All he knew was things had never been this bad.

**Well there it is, chapter 29.**

**Hope you enjoyed it.**

**Thanks again for all the feedback and for continuing to read this story after the delay.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for helping with this chapter.**


	31. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30**

To say that Richard Castle was pleased with what he saw in the shed behind the FBI safe house, once Will Sorenson had input the code into the panel next to the security door and instructed the other two agents to stand guard outside, would be an understatement. On the outside the building looks like an old shed, complete with hints of rust on the metal siding, but the inside is like something out of one of his books. Despite the situation, the writer can't keep a big silly grin from breaking out across his face. This earns him an eye roll and a sigh from the woman he loves, but at that moment he doesn't care, he just rolls in and takes in everything in the room.

The room had the normal things you would expect such as metal cots that didn't look too comfortable, for the agents to sleep upon,. Suddenly Castle felt himself feeling sorry for Sorenson, he didn't see how anyone could get a good night's sleep on those devices of torture. Near them was a door which led to a small room that Castle guessed was the bathroom. There was also a small but functional kitchen area, but that was not what had gotten the writer so excited. The doors that looked normal on the outside were reenforced with about an inch of steel on the inside and had big dead bolt locks that went into the metal sides of the building. There was a rack on the wall with guns of all sorts, and things like gas masks and flashlights, but it was the wall on the far side of the room form the doors that got Castle's attention. There was a large metal desk and on it were about a dozen monitors showing footage from security cameras all over the property, and right next to them was a powerful custom built computer hooked up to a large 26 inch monitor and Castle saw a high speed internet cable running out of the back of the computer.

"You have left me stuck on dial up while down here you have a good internet connection?" Castle complained looking over at the FBI agent who was a few steps ahead of him and off to his right.

"This safe house hasn't been used in a while." Sorenson explained as he made his way over to the computer and sat down in an office chair. "We have a special hook up for connecting with the FBI and local law enforcement but the lines were not run to the house.

"So in the mean time I have to wait five minutes for The onion website to load each page." Castle grumbled.

"Hey, at least we have it when we need it." Sorenson pointed out. Castle had to agree with this and rolled closer to the desk with Beckett walking beside him. Behind him were a very unhappy looking Alexis Castle and Jim Beckett.

Neither the writer's daughter or the detective's father had been pleased when Beckett stormed out in the middle of the nightly news, and when she and Castle had returned to the room they had made their displeasure known. The news that Castle and Beckett would be trying to work the case again and go off on some half baked attempt to save Ryan and Esposito had not done anything to placate them. Still after a good five minutes arguing things had finally calmed down, after Castle had pointed out that if they could figure out who was behind this He and Beckett may not even have to leave the safe house. This caused another argument to break out with Beckett, but in the end he insisted that just like her he could not stay behind while two of his friends were in danger. Only Martha had remained silent, keeping a mostly neutral expression on her face, she had simply told Castle "Do what you have to do, Son". She seemed calm on the outside but inside her heart was breaking over the idea that her only son could be putting himself in danger again. Still she knew breaking down would do nothing to help matters, so she used all of her skill as an actress to hide her true feelings. Still Castle sensed how tense she was so it was with a very heavy heart that he and Beckett led the members of their family down to the shed.

Beckett was also somewhat depressed, she could see once again that her running off had hurt those closest to her, but she didn't know what else to do. Still she soon found something that helped pick her spirits, just a little. Wedged in to the far left corner between the wall and the computer desk, which due to it's size she thought was more of a computer table, was a large white board with a magic marker, now they were in business! She pulled the board out set it sideways beside the the desk. Castle had to smile at this, it was almost like the good old days.

"Okay, so how do you want us to do this?" Alexis piped up and asked, and she fixed Beckett with a somewhat harsh look.

"Well." Beckett began to explain turning herself into cop mode and not letting the teenage girl get to her. "Normally we work out everything we know about a suspect and use that to draw up a profile and then we work a list of suspects who fit the profile."

Jim Beckett had never seen his daughter work before and for a moment he forgot why they were there and his face filled with pride. Still it only lasted a moment before he was brought back to reality.

"Think of it like an episode of House." Castle piped in helpfully, as he pulled up besides Beckett.

"Great so we are going to be wrong three times before we find the right suspect." Alexis huffed.

"That's how it tends to work out in real detective work." Beckett sighed and she turned to face the board and wrote down something that came to mind, when Jim saw it his heart sank. It read, Made threatening phone calls to my mother, knew her routine and what she was working on. Castle looked surprised by this information but there was something about the expression on Kate's face that told him now was not the time to ask about it.

"We know that he started building his power base about nineteen years ago, with money he got from dirty cops." Castle pointed out, he made a point not to say how they knew this. The truth about Montgomery would come out soon enough.

"So maybe he was a low level mobster who saw the dirty cops do something?" Jim Beckett asked.

"Maybe." Kate said thoughtfully but then added. "But that doesn't feel right. Whoever this guy is he is scared of having his identity found out, That doesn't feel right for a mobster who isn't in the public eye."

"Plus if there was a shake up that big in any of New York's gangs or mob families the FBI would have heard about it." Sorrenson pointed out.

"Yeah, this feels more like a public figure of some kind." Castle said, maybe a CEO or corporate lawyer of some kind.

"Or someone in the government." Alexis piped up weakly, she had gotten carried away. She didn't want to help her father or Beckett work this case but she had spoken up despite herself.

"That would be really hard to pull off, and it leaves us with a lot of suspects." Sorrenson said, joining the conversation.

"No, she is right." Martha piped in forcefully. "It's like MacBeth, He did one bad thing years ago to get into power and he has been trying to cover it up ever since."

Beckett wrote the word politician followed by a question mark. "Kate you really believe that it could be someone from the government." Sorrenson scoffed. "That's like something out of his books." He said motioning to the writer.

"Will, we cast a large net and eliminate suspects. That is how good police work is done." Beckett said firmly as she turned to face the FBI agent.

"Plus it would explain how a deal was made with him all these years and why he is just now getting around to eliminating everyone who knows his secret. Election season is coming up and maybe he is planning on becoming much higher profile." Castle fired at the man standing in front of him.

"It just seems far fetched to me." Sorrenson replied with a shrug and returned to his chair.

"But that still doesn't answer the question as to how he knew what Johanna was up to." Jim Beckett said, he was not completely sold on this idea either so he was trying to point out a flaw in it. He hoped it wasn't a politician because that most likely meant his wife's killer could never be brought to justice. "She never talked about her work out of turn. She believed strongly in the ethics of our job."

Beckett nodded a sad but also proud nod, remembering that her mother never talked about her work at home.

"So who at her job would she have to deal with?" Alexis asked, speaking to the older man for the first time.

"Well there would of course be judges, public defender, and the DA's office." Jim said as he thoughtfully stroked his chin.

"Any one of those people would have been in an position to find out about the cops kidnap for ransom plot, and the FBI agent they shot after the fact." Castle pointed out exictedly.

"You are right, they would have been able to figure out both of those facts and use the money to go into state of city government." Beckett said as she listed Judge, public defender, and DA on the board each with their own question mark.

"But now maybe he is getting ready to go national, so he doesn't want this going public." Alexis injected, excited by the prospect of her idea helping. For the first time she finally understood why her dad couldn't stop putting himself in danger and it wasn't just because of the woman standing in front of the white board.

"But most people in those jobs come from money, so why would he need to blackmail cops to build his power base?" Jim asked.

"Because he didn't." Castle pointed out. "The story only makes sense if he used the blackmail money to start building his empire and he has gotten very powerful from it."

"Well then I think we can rule out city government since I don't think anyone who is in city government would have the amount of far reaching power he has." Beckett said as she turned to look at the board once again.

"Not to mention the fact that he thought nothing of killing the head of a Chinese gang just to eliminate a link to him. That would start a gang war." Martha said and everyone turned and looked at her in surprise. "What, I have seen the Wire." She replied defensively.

"Yeah so we can rule out gangs or other mobs. Plus other families or gangs wouldn't scare the number of people that we have seen scared by this guy. Someone would have tried to take him out." Beckett stated as she turned and wrote "No gangs" on the board.

"This guy would have had to launder the money right?" Jim asked.

"Good point, but we have been trying to follow the money and we still have not gotten close." Beckett pointed out with a depressed sigh, it seemed that had hit another dead end.

"Yeah, but if we know who we are looking for maybe it will be easier to backtrack the money from him." Jim insisted.

"You are right!" Castle yelled excitedly. "So about nineteen years ago someone from a middle class or lower background would have gotten lucky on the stock market and left one of those jobs to run for public office."

"And with his reach and the fact that he is seen as untouchable by both himself and the mob he would have to be in at least state government and killing him would bring down the wrath of the feds." Beckett said turning to face Castle, and now once again it felt like old times.

"Exactly, He has a government job that he will lose if this goes public so he will do anything to keep it out of the press." Castle fired back excitedly.

"So while he was putting things together one of the last things he heard was that my mother was trying to expose the cops who killed that FBI agent, so he had to have her murdered." Beckett said and suddenly it wasn't like old times any more, it clearly hurt her to be thinking about this, still Castle knew that the only way to fix this was to give her closure so he pressed on.

"But the cops had proof of what he did, just like he had proof of what they did so he couldn't go after them until he cleaned that up." Castle said, pushing forward.

"Now he is going on the national stage, and he has cleaned that up he is killing everyone who he thinks knows anything." Beckett said.

"Still this leaves us with a lot of suspects." Jim Beckett said. "How do we work them? We can't get warrants for bank records from all of them."

"We use the news." Castle said turning to face the older man. "This guy must be popular to stay in office for almost twenty years and his rise to fame with smart investing would have been seen as an inspiring story, someone would have covered it." This made Beckett wince, the thought of people looking up to the piece of dirt that had murdered her mother and her captain made her want to puke.

"Good idea, but with nineteen years of news, that could take a while and he is sure to figure out what is going on when we go to get warrants." Beckett pointed out glumly.

"Maybe not." Castle said a moment later. "Maybe he has been too clever for his own good."

"What do you mean?" Beckett asked puzeled.

"The patriot act." Castle stated simply.

"I don't see how that helps us." Beckett replied.

"He wanted it to look like there was a gas explosion at the hospital, but when that went wrong it turned into a car bombing. Now he doesn't want anyone to know that we were the targets so he is letting the news report it as a terrorist attack."

Suddenly Beckett saw where he was going and she felt like an idiot for not seeing it sooner. "So the patriot act comes into play and we can investigate anything related to the bombing. He just put the noose around his own neck." Beckett said and she leaned down and kissed Castle on the cheek, she didn't care that his family was watching, because of this man she had a chance to get the monster who murdered her mother.

"Still we have a lot of work to do." Martha pointed out.

"Maybe not." Castle replied as he turned his chair to look at Will Sorrenson who had been working at the computer, not speaking to anyone and he looked glum. "Sorrenson is there something you would like to share with the rest of us?" Castle asked.

"Now bear in mind this is based on your crazy profile, and we have no proof." Sorrenson said as he turned in his chair to face the group.

"But you do have a suspect?" Beckett pressed.

"Yeah I was going through the FBI data base to try and show you that no one fit your profile and instead we got one match." Sorrenson said as he turned back to the computer and then added. "I really think you are wrong about this because it couldn't be."

"Who is it, Will?!" Beckett demanded, becoming angry.

"Fine, but if this is him then it is bigger then any of us and I don't think he can be brought down." Will said with a sigh and then he brought up a file on his computer. What they saw made everyone in the room shiver a little on the inside and their blood run cold. "The man who fits your profile is Senator William Bracken." Sorren stated, they all knew they were in the deep end now.

**Okay hope you liked this one. For some reason starting last Thursday my computer stopped letting me log on to a bunch of websites, including this one. So that is why this chapter is late.**

**I know this chapter was boring and didn't tell us anything we didn't already know but the character needed to figure it out and having something like this happen between chapters and just recapped didn't feel right to me.**

**Oh and if anyone thinks that there were some jumps in logic in how they were able to work this out, well I guess there were but they are the same jumps I made between seasons three and four. In the break between those seasons without any spoilers I did work out that the person behind this had to be a former judge, DA, or PD, who was now a senator or congressman and was thinking about running for president. Ask anyone who knows me and they will tell you I called it a year before the show revealed it. The writers did a great job with that because the facts added up, something that doesn't happen too often with TV plot arcs.**

**So any way thanks for reading and thanks for all of your kind reviews and feedback. See you tomorrow.**

**Thanks once again to Caskettfan5 for helping me edit this chapter.**


	32. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

Cauldwell's blood was still covering Esposito's hands as he rushed up the steps and into the dark, disused lobby of the old apartment building. At the far end of the lobby, hidden in shadows he spotted an old service entrance, that was how the big man must have gotten out without he or Ryan seeing him. The door led out behind the building and when Esposito got there he saw that Cauldwell's car was missing, so the big man must have taken that too. Esposito debated what his next move should be for a moment before deciding that he had to try and get a hold of Ryan, he only hoped his friend had his cellphone on and he would be taking his calls. Still there was only one way to find out, Epsosito pulled out his cellphone, replaced the battery, and brought up Ryan's number from the contact list.

As he waited for Ryan to pick up Epsosito's mind briefly thought about just how screwed they all were and how unlikely it was that they would survive the day. The only time he could remember being in this much danger was when he was in a war zone, and then just as now the greatest danger was the one he could not see. Still he wouldn't go down without a fight and he had made a promise to Cauldwell and he intended to keep it, that was one very good reason to live. He had not known Cauldwell long but the older man had been a comrade in arms and life in the military and in the police had taught Esposito that you never let those down, so he would survive and get the message to his daughter.

"Damn It!" Esposito cursed after the phone went to voice mail. He couldn't get a hold of Rayn but he knew one thing he needed to get off of the streets and away from this location fast. The big man could be back with a riffle or another team could be there any moment. Epsosito didn't like the idea of leaving Cauldwell's body to rot in an old basement of a run down building, it went against his every instinct, but he also knew he couldn't do anything other then wait to die where he was, so he turned and made his way in front of the building and down the street and hoped that he could catch a cab a few blocks over where the neighborhood got better. He didn't dare call the NYPD since the only people he knew for a fact he could trust where either dead, in hiding, or not speaking to him. As he made his way down the street detective Javier Esposito had never felt more alone. He was working solo without a safety net.

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"I voted for that bastard!" Jim Beckett screamed so loud that it made Kate take a step back in shock. He then kicked the white board his daughter had been writing on so hard it fell backwards to the floor with a mighty crash.

Everyone else in the room remained silent as Kate rushed over to to her father. He turned away so no one could see the tears that were forming in his eyes. Kate grabbed his shoulders forcefully and making him look at her. She could see that the rage and heartbreak in his eye mirrored her own but she tried to remember her training, she had calmed the family members of murder victims down many times before but it had never been personal like it was now. It's easy to tell people to remain calm when you don't know the victim. Still she knew she had to calm him down. "It's okay dad, please. We will get him." Kate stated soothingly.

"How?" Jim asked as he looked down at his daughter, he was drying the tears from his eyes. "His lawyers will keep any warrants tied up in court for years and he has people everywhere. This is a fight that we can't win."

This gave Kate pause for a moment as the reality of the situation sunk in. How could they fight a senator who was most likely to become the next president? Was there even a point to it? Maybe they should all just go into hiding in another country, since if they stayed here they would never been safe? No, she wasn't going to do that. She had never run from a suspect before and she wasn't about to start now. She had no idea how they would take him down but three years ago she thought her mother was murdered by a random street gang, now she knew it was a hit and she knew who was behind it. She, Castle and her team would find a way. Her team. In the excitement she had forgotten about them for a moment and that moment of selfishness now filled her with a sense of shame. She had to find and save them before she did anything else. Still before she could do that she had to calm her father down so she got her emotions under control for the moment and spoke firmly but quietly.

"I don't know, but we will get him. There has to be a trail either of money or people, now we know who was on each end of it, the trail will be much easier to follow." She said and while her father seemed to stop crying, he didn't look convinced. "Please trust me and let me work this case." She pleaded.

"Okay." Was her father's only reply as he got control of himself again and then he walked a few steps forward with his daughter to rejoin the rest of the group around the computer. Thankfully they all seemed to have decided to ignore his outburst and focus on the task at hand.

"I will remind you that this is all based on a profile, and we have no proof it was him." Sorenson stated firmly, addressing Castle who had been saying something that seemed to get on his nerves.

"Then let's find the proof." Castle protested. "There has to be a link between the dirty cops and Bracken and it has to be the money. Otherwise why go after Kate and everyone else involved with the case."

"I am still not convinced it is him, it seems far fetched to me." Sorenson said returning his attention to the computer.

"The story makes sense." Castle replied.

"The story, that is your reasoning?" Sorensons scoffed with disbelief all over his face.

"Hear him out!" Beckett injected forcefully, drawing all eyes to her.

"Kate, I know this is personal for you and I am trying to help, but we have to go with facts." Sorenson said, trying to remain calm. The world seemed to be going crazy in front of his eyes.

"Listen the story is how the facts go together and Castle has been right more times then he has been wrong." Beckett said in a tone that left no room for argument.

"Okay." Sorenson said with a sigh, he was unable to believe he was going along with this. He then turned his attention to the writer in the wheelchair. "What is the story?" he asked.

"Look we know whoever is behind this isn't taking any chances, he is almost paranoid." Castle began to explain and everyone including Sorenson nodded that they understood so far. "Look at Bracken's voting record, he has taken the side of every security measure and social safety new program that has come in front of the senate regardless of which party supported it. It's one of the reasons he is so popular. He doesn't believe in taking chances with anything, the personality fits."

"Yeah, some people have called him paranoid in the past." Alexis piped in, supporting her father and then added. "We live in the twenty-four/seven news world now, my generation can't go a day without hearing this kind of stuff, even if we are not looking for it." She explained to the room.

"Right, not to mention the time line fits." Kate pointed out.

"This is still a long way from proof." Sorenson noted, he could see he would have to prove to them how crazy this idea was before they would drop it. The trouble was he wasn't sure how to prove to them that this idea was crazy. The writer's insanity seemed to have rubbed off on everyone in the room except for him.

"Then let's look for the proof." Castle said. "There has to be either a company, a bank account, or a person linking him to the dirty cops. If we can't find one then it's someone else and we are wrong, but let's at least look."

"It's not that simple." Sorenson objected.

"How is it not that simple, he is a suspect who tried to kill me and Castle and he murdered my mother. You don't want to stand between me and him!" Kate Beckett fumed as she stepped up beside Castle and invaded the Sorenson's personal space.

"First of all I can't find proof because I don't have the case." Sorenson pointed out.

"Then find out who does have the case and get us on it." Beckett demanded.

"It's not that easy, whoever is in charge would have to believe me and if you are right who is to say that person isn't working for Bracken?" Sorenson pointed out.

"There has to be a way to look at his financial records, and just check them out for a link." Castle said, refusing to back down in front of the closed minded agent.

"There would need to be warrants, and don't you think he would make a sink and block us every step of the way?" Sorenson protested, he wasn't willing to lose his job over this case and he was sure that was what would happened if he followed this hairbrained idea.

"He can't." Alexis said, speaking up again and everyone looked at her with a puzzled expression on their faces. "He has supported the patriot act and all the other anti terrorism bills. Since the attack in New York is being called a terrorist action, he can't complain in public or it will look like he calling for one set of laws to apply to the citizens and another to the people in government who pass the laws. It's would create a firestorm of negative press and draw people's attention to this case just a couple of years before a big election. That is what he is trying to avoid."

"Alexis, you are brilliant!" Kate said, this made the teenage girl blush for a moment. Kate then returned he attention to Sorenson. "So you see I think we can look into this. He has made a huge misstep with that bombing. We have to at least try."

This was just too much for Sorenson and against his better judgment he found himself sighing and agreeing to see what he could do. He wasn't sure what had come over him since it was like someone else was speaking with his voice, he wasn't sure if he was his better nature or the writer was making him go insane too. Still it wasn't like they would find anything and hopefully the most that would happen is that he would get demoted or sent to another field office and his family would come with him. That was the important part after all, as long as he had his family with him he could put up with a dead end job.

Beckett then spoke up and she sounded a little more depressed then a second ago. "There is just one problem, this could take months."

"Yeah, you are right about that." Sorenson stated.

"So this will not help Ryan and Esposito, and they need help fast." Beckett pointed out and a somber mood descended on the room.

"There may be a way to test this theory and get some of the pressure taken off." Castle said thoughtfully a few moments later.

"What do you mean?" Beckett asked looking down at him. She was fighting her own heart which wanted to trust him but also didn't want to be shattered when the plan proved unworkable.

Instead of answering Kate directly Castle turned his attention to Sorenson. "How fast can you get me back to New York."

"I guess by about two in morning if we don't take any chances." Sorenson replied after giving it a moment's thought.

"Good, don't take any chances, I don't want to expose anyone here or the safe house." Castle said clearly pleased with the agent for the first time ever. "Also I will need to make a call to my agent. If I am right Ryan and Esposito will be free by lunch time tomorrow."

Kate looked at him puzzled and he simply beamed up at her, with that smile that crossed his face every time he helped solve a case. "Don't worry, I have a plan."

**Well there is chapter 31.**

**Thanks once again for all of your kind reviews and support.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	33. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32**

Detective Esposito had made it one block down the street and was just turning a corner when his cellphone started to ring, he fished it out of his coat pocket and answered it.

"Look I am sorry about the fight, I just talked to Jenny and she is fine for now. I need to get her somewhere safe and then I will be right back." Ryan's voice came over the the phone with an apologetic but firm tone.

"Forget it, that doesn't matter right now." Esposito said, quickly cleaning the slate and then he added. "I need you back here now. That big man got free of the cuffs and he killed Cauldwell. He now has Cauldwell's gun, cellphone, and car and I am out on the street alone. I need you to get back here right now." He instructed firmly.

Esposito was met with silence on the other end of the phone. "This happened when we were fighting, right?" Ryan finally asked quietly and the guilt could clearly be heard in his voice.

Normally Esposito would try to reassure his friend but right now he needed him to start thinking clearly and put aside his panic, guilt is a powerful tool so he decided to use it. "Yeah, he said something he knew would cause you to panic so he could get us out of the room and make his move. Esposito's tone was even and without judgment, he let his words alone do the work.

After a few seconds of silence he was met with the words he needed to hear. "Okay." Ryan said with a sigh. "I am on my way back now."

"Good, we have to find this guy fast." Esposito said, taking charge. "Where are you now?

"I am in a Taxi, headed for Jenny's place but we just turned around." Ryan reported.

"Good, once you get here we start looking." Esposito replied, he was glad to see that his friend was seeing sense, that increased their chances of surviving this mess.

"Yeah about that." Ryan said carefully, sure his partner was not going to like what he had to say next. "We need to bring Gates in on this."

"What, are you crazy?!" Esposito demanded, shocked. "For all we know she could be involved."

"We don't have a choice." Ryan said firmly and then began to explain. "I just heard on the radio that the NYPD is looking for us, we have a dead FBI agent and at least one professional killer who took us both out easily on our hands. Like it or not we have to bring the boss in on this, there is no other way." Esposito just let out frustrated sigh, so then Ryan added. "It is also the only way we can be sure our friends and family will be safe. I am only doing this if we can keep Jenny and my Sisters safe and the only way we can do that now is to bring Gates in on this."

"All right." Esposito agreed with another heavy sigh. "Still I am not looking forward to explaining all this to her. Even if she isn't involved, she will not be happy."

"I know." Ryan said sounding a little depressed. "But my mistake cost us the life of a good man and I am not going to let it happen again this is too big for the two of us, we need back up and with Castle and Beckett in hiding there is no one else."

"I know." Esposito finally conceded. "I just hate that it has come to this."

"Me too." Ryan replied and then ended the call.

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Castle and Beckett had been riding in the FBI van for about half an hour and Castle had just finished explaining his plan to Beckett. Their family had been left back at the safe house with the three FBI agents, it had taken some doing but they had managed to convince them to stay where it was safe. At least what passed for safe at the moment. Still that wasn't the biggest thing on Beckett's mind, she had just heard Castle's plan and she didn't like it much.

"You really think this will work?" She asked quietly, and despite how dark it was in the back of the van Castle could see the doubt written all over her face.

"It's our best shot, to get Ryan and Esposito back and to stop anyone else from getting hurt in the crossfire." Castle explained as he tried to remain calm. In truth the thought of heading back into the line of fire scared the hell out of him and it was taking all of his self control to not shake all over as he sat in the back of the van.

"Montgomery had a lot more then we had and it didn't keep him safe. All we have is a bluff. As long a Bracken is alive we will never be safe." Beckett stated brokenly.

"I know." Castle said in a tone that told Beckett he understood the gravity of the situation. "But he didn't have my fame or these attacks making this one of the biggest news stories in the world, and Bracken can not be sure how much we know. It's clear he already thinks we have all the pieces, so we have to use that."

"I can't give up this case." Beckett explained, and she knew this statement would hurt Castle but it was the truth.

"I don't expect you to." Castle said as he nodded his understanding. "I don't expect what we are about to do to take the pressure off for more then a few months tops, but we need some breathing room if we are going to work this case and we will not have that if he keeps coming after people."

"I hope Ryan and Esposito are okay." Beckett said a moment later and there was worry in her voice.

"Bracken and his people know that they need them alive to draw us out so I am sure they are fine." Castle said and then added. "That is why we are doing this to save them, it's our only shot."

"Okay, I just don't like the idea of you putting yourself in danger and that is what you are doing here." Beckett said finally looking at the man sitting across from her.

"Well I don't like the idea of you being in danger, but we do this together. Just like always." Castle state gently.

"Always." Beckett returned and a small, sad smile played across her lips. It was then that they felt the truck pull over onto the side of the road and stop. Beckett reached for her gun, ready for anything. She was relieved when the back door open and when she looked out into the pitch black the one thing she could make out was the face of Will Sorenson.

"I just thought I would let you know that I just heard on the radio that detectives Esposito and Ryan have been found unharmed. It seems they wandered back into the 12th precinct on their own, unharmed." The FBI special agent reported and a bigger smile then a moment ago spread across Beckett's face. "So we will be heading back to the safe house now. " Sorenson added.

"No." Castle replied gravely. This drew shocked looks from both Beckett and Sorenson. "We still have to do this, he will keep coming until he gets someone we care about. We have to do this now."

"But he hasn't gone after anyone yet, why rush this?" Beckett objected, desperate not to see Castle put himself in danger again.

"He will, you know it." Castle stated firmly.

"I am with Kate on this, why rush things?" Sorenson added.

"How long do you think it will be before he comes after Ryan's sisters. Or Alexis' mother?" Castle demanded. Kate clearly was hurt by his mention of his ex wife so he added an explanation. "He is bound to figure out that I will not let Alexis lose her mother, no matter how lousy she has been at the job. We have to do this now."

Beckett thought about it for a moment and she better then anyone else knew what it was like to lose a mother, and she wouldn't inflict that pain on anyone else. So finally she nodded that she agreed.

"You sure?" Sorenson asked, looking at her gravely.

"Yeah, I am sure." Beckett said as she turned her attention to him. "Let's finish what we set out to do."

"It's against my better judgment, but okay." Sorenson said with a sigh and he closed the doors and then headed back to the driver's seat of the van.

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"So let me get this straight!" Victoria Gates fumed at the two detectives who were standing in front of her desk, looking worse for wear. She had been on duty all night, refusing to go home while two of her own were missing and now that she had found out that they had chosen to ignore orders and put her though this she was in no mood for games. "You are telling me that you went off of policy with an FBI agent who you had not met before today, chased a sniper to a basement without calling for back up, and then not only did he get away, but the FBI agent who is the only one who can back up your story was killed?!"

"Yes, sir." They both replied and the mention of Cauldwell's death seemed to fill them with sadness and shame still Gates wasn't letting up.

"Is there any reason I shouldn't bring the two of you up on charges?" Gates demanded.

"No, sir." Ryan spoke up and there was guilt all over his face. "But there is something you should know. Agent Cauldwell was sure this guy we are hunting had contacts in the FBI as well as the NYPD he was wasn't sure who we could trust. We took a chance coming to you." Ryan explained.

"Only because you had no choice, you made a mess and expect me to clean it up." Gate pointed out, she wasn't falling for any of this.

"Yes, that is true but this goes beyond any of that." Ryan insisted.

"He is right, you can do whatever you want to us but this goes beyond just us. There is someone powerful out there who is coming after all of us." Esposito joined it.

Gates considered this for a moment and then she spoke in a much quieter tone of voice. "There is only one reason for me to believe you, and that is because I have seen the work of this man first hand." This drew shocked looks from Ryan and Esposito so she continued. "For years at I.A.D I chased my tail trying to bring down a ring of bad cops, but every time I got close either someone would turn up dead, evidence would go missing, or I would be pulled onto another case. I was convinced that someone powerful was behind it all but no one would listen to me. I have spent over a decade trying to find this guy." Ryan and Esposito nodded that they understood, Gates then added more forcefully looking them both in the eye. "You do not have my trust, you have done nothing to earn it. The only reason I believe you is because I know you are telling the truth. Make no mistake we will have a talk about the way you two went against department policy and my orders." She then took a breath and a finished on a somewhat kinder but no less firm note. "However I am willing to put that aside until we solve this case, I will get a protective detail on your families and we will work this together."

"Thank you, sir." Ryan said and Esposito echoed his thoughts a moment later.

"Now go home and get some sleep, we all need to be at our best in the morning." Gates instructed and the two men nodded that they understood and turned and left the office leaving their Captain to wonder what she had gotten herself into when she took this job. Still she had joined the police and later I.A.D to take a stand against corruption and she wasn't about to stop now.

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Castle, Beckett, and Sorenson had checked into a hotel under aliases and despite the the fact that it made them both uncomfortable Sorenson had insisted on sleeping in a large, comfy chair that was in the corner of the room. He wasn't about to let either of them out of his site. After Beckett had helped Castle use the bathroom and get washed up he had made a few calls to set things up for tomorrow. Sleep had not come easily to any of them but at last exhaustion had claimed them and they had drifted off.

Castle was the only one to awaken while it was pitch dark, he could barely see a thing but he could make out curtains blowing in the breeze. The curtains were in front of a window that he knew had been closed. He tried to yell to wake Kate up but it was then that he became aware of a heavy hand that was on his mouth that was almost cutting off his breath. "Don't scream." A gruff male voice whispered and Castle looked up to see it belonged to a strong tall man with white hair and the signs of a long hard life on his face. "I am on your side. I am the guy who moved the bomb to the truck, and sent leads to the FBI. I have been protecting you, but my plans aren't all working out." The man explained and then asked. "If I take your hand off of your mouth will you hear me out before you scream?"

Castle nodded that he would and the man released him. "Why should I believe you?" Castle whispered his demand. "How do you know all these things. Only one of Bracken's men could know?"

"I know them because I am C.I.A and we have an interest in this case." Castle didn't look like he believed him so the man continued. "North Korean and Russian agents have already found out Bracken's secret. Can you imagine what a disaster it would be for national security if he became president? They could blackmail him and get any piece of information they wanted from him and he would give it to them, he is completely self centered."

Castle nodded that he understood. He had never thought of it like that but now that he did, it was a nightmare he was sure no one wanted to face. "Still why bother protecting me?" Castle demanded. "Why not just go after him yourself, why do you care?"

The man let out a sigh and then slowly spoke. "Because son, I am your father."

**Okay there is chapter 32, I hope you liked it.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	34. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33**

"Why should I believe you?" Castle whispered harshly at the older man through gritted teeth. "If you are my father, why show up now. Where were you before I was shot?" With that demand tears started to form in Castle's eyes but he wouldn't let this stranger see him cry so he fought against them.

"Look I would love to get into all of this with you but we don't have time." The older man said with a hint of regret in his voice.

"Make the time!" Castle demanded and his voice came close to breaking above a whisper.

"Listen I know what you are planning, word has gone out to the press so I put the pieces together." The man said as he changed the subject.

"What does that have to do with any of this?" Castle asked, clearly not happy with the change of topic.

"Because it will not be enough, you have a good idea since Bracken's power comes from his office." The man continued to explain in an manner that only a true cold blooded professional could. Castle was too stunned to answer so he continued. "The trouble is right now he will be able to tell you don't have anything."

"So you want me to call it off?" Castle asked, his attention turned to the problem at hand for a moment.

"No, but I need to give you more." The man said and then held out a piece of paper and handed it to Castle. "Have your F.B.I buddy look into this bank account and have your girlfriend there." He nodded in the direction of Beckett who was sleeping besides Castle on the double bed. "Look more closely at a drug dealer you questioned a few months ago named Vulcan Simmons."

"What does he have to do with this?" Castle asked, puzzled.

"I shouldn't have come here at all. Bracken has people everywhere and not just in law enforcement and some of them are on to me." The man said quickly as he made his way to the window.

"Wait." Castle pleaded desperately. "At least tell me your name."

"Jackson Hunt." The man replied simply and then he was gone leaving a very confused and conflicted Castle behind.

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It was around three in the morning when Martha Rodgers found Kate's father rummaging around in the kitchen cabinets in the dark. Alexis had finally passed fallen asleep on the porch couch a few minutes before. The teenage girl had been unable to simply go back to bed and so Martha had done her best to distract the girl with gossip and stories about the theaters, but for one her heart just hadn't been in it so they had settled on watching bad late night TV until Alexis had finally passed out.

Jim Beckett had gone straight to his room as soon as his daughter had left. The toll this was all taking on him was there for all to see and he clearly wanted to be alone with his troubles. Still when Martha had heard noise in the kitchen she decided to go check it out. The truth was she missed having someone her own age to talk to and she couldn't sleep any more then Alexis could but she didn't have teenage hormones to tire her out and put her to sleep.

"If you are looking for alcohol, my son poured it all down the drain while I wasn't looking." Martha said quietly as she turned on a single overhead light. The dim glow of the light bathed the room in a soft warm glow that stood in stark contrast to the darkness that covered the rest of the room.

"Ah, no. I was just looking for something to eat." Jim Beckett replied as he stood up and turned to face the actress from across the counter. He had clearly not heard Martha enter the room and was surprised to see her there.

"Oh, don't worry I will not judge. Truth be told I could use a drink myself." Martha said grimly.

"Yeah well I can't put the stuff down and I can't do that to Kate. If she comes out of this alive I don't want to push her away." Jim explained as he looked down at the counter.

"I know what you mean." Martha said and she reached out and placed her hand over Jim's which was resting on the counter. "I keep thinking about all the things I meant to do with Richard and wonder if I pushed him into this."

"Yeah." Was all Jim Beckett said in reply and to his own surprise he didn't pull his hand away. The Beckett's had never been touchy feely people but at that moment he didn't feel like pulling away. "I keep thinking that if only I had taken those phone calls seriously, none of this would have happened."

Martha didn't ask for the story, she could read people and could tell reliving the story would not help the man who stood across from her, plus she could put most of the pieces together herself. Her son wasn't the only detective in the family. "I don't see what you could have done." Martha said in a comforting tone.

"Kate said the same thing, but I still have to wonder." Jim replied with out looking up at Martha.

"We all do, but the past is the past. Live for the present, that is my motto." Martha said, sounding braver then she really was.

"That's easier said then done when you are expecting your whole world to come crashing down." Jim replied gravely and then he looked up at Martha and added. "I'm sorry I am sure the last thing you need is to hear about my problems. My daughter got your son shot and you have a granddaughter to worry about if the worst should happen." He then pulled away and started to leave when Martha spoke, drawing his attention back to her.

"You are right, I don't know what I am going to do. I don't know how to cushion the blow for Alexis when I will be destroyed too." Martha admitted as she looked away from Jim and off to the left.

"Well just don't lose yourself like I did." Jim replied a moment later. "The biggest mistake of my life was not being there for Kate when she needed me. It changed her and the person she was got walled up and I haven't seen the real Kate in years."

"That's going to be hard." Martha said gravely.

"Yeah, I still have not figured out how to do it." Jim said honestly. "I don't understand how you can't hate me or my daughter. Your son is in a wheelchair because of us, how do you do it?"

"Sometimes I do." Martha admitted looking over at Jim. All he did was silently nod that he understood. "Then I see him and even in the wheelchair he is a better person then he was. Your daughter isn't the only one who puts up walls."

"I guess we all have our own walls." Jim Observed.

"Given his reputation, I am surprised you didn't throw a fit when you found out your daughter was working with him." Martha said a moment later.

"I did at first." Jim admitted. "Then I started to see a change in her and it was like the wall started to come down. I don't know how but he found a way inside."

"It was the same with Richard." Martha explained. "He was always an outgoing person and flirty. I guess growing up on the road surrounded by actors does that to a boy. Maybe if I had been a better mother or he had a father things would have been different."

"From what I can tell you did alright." Jim said offering comfort to the actress for the first time. "I don't think you screwed him up the way I did with Kate. He doesn't seem to hide behind walls like Kate."

"That's because his walls are better hidden." Martha explained sadly. "I think in his heart of hearts he always wanted a family and for a while he had that with Alexis' mother. Then she dropped him and his wall went up. Before he was flirty but then he became a full blown playboy, hiding his real feelings behind that mask so he could never get hurt again. I never liked her but he really didn't love Alexis' mother, I think that is why he used to let her use him every time she came into town. Some small part of him hoped things could be fixed, even if he knew in his head it would never work out." Martha then looked a little ashamed. "I really shouldn't be telling you any of this, it's very private."

"It's okay." Jim said gently. "I am a lawyer, I know how to keep a secret." He then added in a lighter tone. "Plus it's good to know something about the man who I am sure will be my future son in-law."

"You really think they have a future beyond the next few days?" Martha asked gravely.

"I hope so." Jim replied thoughtfully. "I keep trying to tell myself even if they don't at least Kate was happy for a while before the end but that is a hard pill to swallow."

"I know what you mean, but since he met Kate it's like the man he was before has been slowly coming back to life, so I will always be grateful to your daughter for giving that back to me."

"Your son has undone a lot of the damage I did and my daughter wouldn't be alive without him, so I will be grateful to him for that." Jim said and then added. "I just wish it didn't come at such a price."

"Me too." Martha replied sadly. "This isn't the future that any parent sees for their child. Still he is happier in the wheelchair then he was out of it and when they work as a team he and Kate have a way of beating the odds."

"They do at that, most people wouldn't have been able to get together with all of the walls and drama." Jim said with a soft smile.

"That is true, there were times when I almost gave up on Richard coming to his senses." Martha said with a small smile.

"I wouldn't place all the blame on him. Stubbornness seems to be a genetic trait of the Beckett woman." Jim pointed out.

"Still all is well that ends well." Martha said, forcing herself to become cheerful.

"I just hope this ends well." Jim observed grimly.

"I am sure it will, you can't keep my son down and Kate is too stubborn to let this end badly." Martha said and then she turned and headed for the living room while Jim Beckett headed up to his bedroom, hoping that the actress would turn out to be right.

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The morning had not started well for Senator William Bracken. He had needed to come to New York to take care of some business last night, normally he stayed out of the city when the more unpleasent aspects of his business were being taken care of but there were some things that he just had to take care of on his own. One of these things was the fact that the idiots he had hired had bungled things and things that were supposed to be taken care of quietly had happened in the full view of the public. Still it was a minor set back and at least he had a good cover story. Terrorist attacks, what a gift that was for someone like him. No one would question it. Still it did mean that he was a expected to be in New York when he made a statement about them. So as much as he wanted to be somewhere else getting things done he had to come to New York and put on a good show.

He hated putting on shows for the press. He wished this country wasn't so stupid. The best man for the job should be allowed to do the job and shouldn't have to put on a show for the press or anyone else. Why couldn't everyone see that? Everyone complained about the fact that the government was broken but he couldn't fix it without getting his hands dirty. It was a fact of life that you had to fight fire with fire, there was no other way to take on the bad guys then using their own tactics and methods of funding against them. That was a fact of the adult world, no different then the earth being round. Why couldn't people understand this simple fact?

He was the leader this country needed, so why did he have to keep getting bogged down in all of this mess? Still he was sure he would get the prize he deserved at the end, it was just he was going through the trials that would make victory all the sweeter.

Still even though he was sure he would win in the end, today was not going to be a good day. He had woken up in his penthouse apartment to find that a small package had been delivered overnight. After taking it into his study and locking the door he had opened it to find that it contained a human thumb and he had a pretty good idea whose thumb it was. In the package there was also a small handwritten note that read "_You are in over your head. Back off or the next guy comes home in a body bag."_

Reading the note put Bracken into a rage and after he had closed the package and placed it on his desk he decided that he would need to dispose of it himself, he was a careful man and didn't trust anyone else not to ask questions. He then made a few phone calls to set some things in motion to deal with these trouble makers once and for all. He then found out that the idiot writer was staging a press conference this morning, just in time for the national news broadcasts. This wasn't good, but he could weather the storm and the fact that the writer was holding it in front of his apartment building gave Bracken a window to tie up all his loose ends.

Still there was a third party of some kind out there but he had heard that some of his people had picked up a trail, so that could be dealt with in due course.

Bracken looked at his watch, it was twenty-five after seven, five minutes until the press conference. He turned on the large flat screen Tv that took up most of the wall opposite his desk. It wouldn't hurt to hear the writer and the detective's last words, and to confirm that his troubles were over with his own eyes.

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Castle and Beckett were side beside in the lobby of his building, the press had gathered outside and they could see the crowd that had gathered in front of the two microphones that and the speakers that were set up in front of the building. Richard Castle's name carried a lot of weight and when Paula had told the press that he would be making a statement about his shooting that had been enough to get all the national and local press to cover it. Ryan and Epsosito were there as well at Castle's insistence, Gates wasn't happy but had gone along with it. Sorenson had been called into the federal building for a meeting with his boss, a man who did not sound happy over the phone.

It had been decided that Castle and Beckett would deal with the press themselves so they stood together with Ryan and Esposito a few feet behind them.

Castle looked up at the woman standing on his right hand side. "I would feel a lot better if you wouldn't go out there." He said, deciding to plead his case one last time.

"No way." Beckett said firmly with a shake of her head. "We are doing this together."

"You know the risk." Castle said gravely.

"Yes, I do but we face this together like everything else."

"Okay." Castle said a moment later and then he gave her hand a squeeze. "You ready?" He asked, looking back up at her.

"Yeah, let's do this." Beckett replied and they made their way out and into the sunlight and despite the danger it felt good not to be hiding at that moment.

Castle made his way to the microphone and he cleared his throat and then he started to speak. "I would like to thank you all for coming, I will be making a statement about my shooting and then I will not be taking any questions because I am very tired." The crowd began shouting questions as they noticed Beckett step up beside him but both he and Beckett ignored the questions and they died down once he started to speak again. "First however I would like to thank my fans and the NYPD for the outpouring of support I have received over the past week, I am humbled that so many people seem to keep me and my family in their thoughts and prayers."

Beckett shifted from one foot to the next , clearly not comfortable with all of the public attention but she knew she would have to get used to it so she just quietly waited for her turn to speak. "Before I go into the shooting that has robbed me of the use of my legs and the bombing outside of the hospital that targeted both Detective Beckett and myself I feel I should give you some background." This caused all of the reporters to begin shouting questions loudly at the same time and Castle waited for the noise to die down before he calmly continued.

"For the past three years as most of you know I have had the honor of assisting the brave men and women of the NYPD on a consultant basis." Castle and then he motioned to woman standing beside him. "In particular, Detective Kate Beckett and her team who I consider to be the finest people I have ever worked with. In all that time I have never talked to anyone about active cases and I have only talked about cases that I have worked when called to testify in court."

"I would just like to add that Mr. Castle has proven to extremely helpful with cases and it has been a pleasure to work with him." Beckett jumped in and this cause all attention to go to her and Castle was rendered speechless for a moment. Beckett then smiled down at him and a moment later he continued with his prepared statement.

"I say this because I need you all to know that what I am about to do I do not do lightly but Detective Becket and myself as well as our families have been targeted for assassination by a powerful person within the government who is protected by people on his payroll in all branches of law enforcement including the FBI." The whole crowd was now in an uproar and it was then that Beckett spoke again.

"This started with the investigation into the cold blooded murder of my mother Johana Beckett." Her voiced cracked when she said this and it clearly took a lot out of her to be so public with this, so Castle jumped in an saved her.

"We discovered that far from a random act of gang violence this cowardly and brutal murder was a professional hit that was ordered by one man in the government. The assassin died when detective Becket was forced to shoot him to save my life." Castle then looked up at Beckett with pride.

"Since then we have been following every lead in this case and we have found a web corruption and dirty money, rarely seen in the history of this country." Beckett said putting on her best cop face but then it dropped away. "This monster who murdered my mother has murdered and continues to murder many others in order to keep his secret."

"In that Detective Beckett here was the target of the shooting where I was hit." Castle reported, not wanted to expose Kate to the press like this any longer then he had to. He could tell her control was slipping.

"I will forever be grateful to Mr. Castle for jumping in front of the bullet and saving my life." Beckett said and tears began to form in her eyes.

Castle didn't wait for the reporters to stop talking, he pushed ahead. "Since then not only have we both become targets but our families have been threatened and bystanders have been put at risk. That truck bombing was an attempt to destroy the hospital where I was staying. This monster was willing to engage in terrorism just to kill me."

"Thar is why we are here." Beckett said firmly and there was fire in her eyes. "To send a message to the son of bitch who murdered my mother and crippled the man I love." This filled everyone with shock including Castle who was at a loss for words, he couldn't believe what he had just heard. In Truth Beckett couldn't believe what she had just said either but she was on a roll and she wasn't stopping to think about what she was saying. "We will not let you put people in danger any more and we are done hiding. We have a bank account number..."

In his office Bracken was shocked as he heard the number she read off, his worst fears had come to pass. He needed to deal with this situation fast.

"We also know the name of the man who runs your drug operation, so here is the deal." Beckett then looked directly into the cameras, her earlier nervousness and sadness replaced with a cold determination. Castle was still too shocked to speak but no one was paying attention to him at that moment. "We will keep your secret, but no one else dies. If our families or anyone else is ever harmed by you we will use this information and destroy you. You will know true justice in a court of law some day and that is more then you gave my mother or anyone else. If you come after us again, you will be destroyed and you have made powerful enemies who will not wait for you to go to trial to get their revenge. Make no mistake one way or another your days of preying on the weak are over."

As Castle looked up at her with a mixture of pride and shock a million question came at them from the press, but a second later this was interrupted by the loud echo of a gun being fired and as the crowd screamed in terror, Beckett flew backwards and fell to the ground.

**Well that is Chapter 33, I hope you liked it.**

**Oh and I know some people are going to point out that Castle has never testified in court on the show, but the constitution protects the right of the accused to face his or her accuser. So in any case where Castle gave them a lead or found evidence the defense would have the right to question him in court so I am just assuming that has happened off screen. If it didn't every case he worked could have been thrown out.**

**Oh and in case you are wondering, Yeah I couldn't remember the bank account number so I just wrote around it.**

**Thanks again for reading and reviewing, you guys are the best.**

**Thanks to Castkettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	35. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34**

At almost the exact moment Beckett hit the ground detectives Ryan and Esposito rushed out of the lobby and to her and Castle. Esposito began dragging Beckett inside while Ryan quickly turned Castle's wheelchair around and began pushing it inside, as if he could some how will the chair to go faster. It was about this time that a second shot rang out and this one hit the place Castle had been sitting just a second before. Screams could be heard from the street as all four entered the lobby careful to stay well away from the windows. Esposito began checking Beckett.

"It's okay, it just caught my vest." Beckett reported with a painful cough as she sat up.

"Yeah well it is a good thing you both were wearing them, and that sniper didn't go for a head shot." Esposito observed grimly.

"Well I am fine, How is Castle doing?" Beckett asked and when she looked over at him what she saw took her breath away. Castle was not making a sound, instead his hands were clutched around the armrests of his wheelchair and he was looking dead ahead with an expression of absolute terror on his face.

Beckett quickly ran over to the writer and placed her hand on his and began rubbing it soothingly. "It's okay, we are all fine. You are not hurt and neither am I." She said in a gentle tone but this didn't get a response from him. "Quick, get some blankets from the loft!" She barked at Ryan and Esposito without looking away from Castle's dead eyes. "He's in shock!"

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Within moments of detective Beckett being shot senator Bracken was on the special prepaid cellphone that he kept for emergencies talking to his chief of staff.

"What was that fool Maddox thinking?!" He bellowed into the cheap phone. "This makes me look more guilty, how does this fix anything?!"

"I know, it's a problem we will have to deal with." The man on the other end reported calmly. "The orders I gave Maddox were to observe only, not to go in for the kill."

"Well he doesn't take orders very well!" Bracken fumed. "Either get him under control or eliminate him."

"Don't worry, it will be taken care of." The man on the other end reported.

"It had better be. I am so close to getting everything I need, it can't all fall apart now, not when everything I have worked so hard for is within my grasp." Bracken stated a little calmer but if anyone could see his face they would know that he was worried.

"Yes WE, have worked hard." The man on the other end agreed and he made sure Bracken knew he was including himself in the equation. "I don't want to go to prison any more then you do so this will be cleaned up."

"Well to that end we are going to have to work fast, it doesn't matter what it looks like that bank and all records linking me to that account need to be destroyed today." Bracken ordered.

"I agree but it will draw a lot of attention." The man on the other end agreed. "Still we have to do it before the feds or anyone else looks to closely at it."

"Then all that is left is the tape, that tape that has been hanging over my head for almost two decades. Then I will be free." Bracken said and for a split second a look of longing passed over his face, but it was quickly brushed aside. He had trained himself to be cold as ice and that is what was needed now.

"If we can get rid of Beckett, Castle and their team the tape becomes far less urgent." The man pointed out.

"Yes it would but it has to be done quietly." Brackett agreed coldly. "Until we can do that we have to eliminate anything they can find that can be traced back to me."

"Along those lines, what do you want done with Simmons?" The man on the other end asked.

"Kill him." Bracken replied simply.

There was a moment of silence on the other end and then the man spoke carefully. "I am not sure that is a good idea, we need his money and contacts at the moment."

"Okay." Bracken said with a sigh. "Stash him somewhere safe, but make sure he stays there and if anyone gets too close to him, kill him!" Bracken ordered.

"Alright." The man accepted the order.

"Also tell our people at the FBI to delay things until we can take care of that account." Bracken ordered as he became more calm, the situation was bad but he was seeing now that it could be handled.

"I will but they may not be able to delay things for long, I just got a message telling me that the President has called the Attorney General to a special meeting at the White House. My guess is that by the end of the day this will be out of the FBI's hands." The man reported gravely.

"Well then we are on the clock." Bracken said after giving the matter a moment of thought. "You take care of as much as you can and I will talk to the President and try to convince him that without proof taking the case away from the FBI shows a lock of respect for the men and woman who work there."

"Okay, I get started on my part." The man reported and then hung up, leaving Bracken with some phone calls to make and a speech to prepare. He wasn't licked yet, not by a long shot.

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A few minutes latter Castle slowly returned to life, he was shaking as if he was in a blizzard but he was alive and responding when Kate talked to him.

"It's alright, I am okay." Beckett repeated over and over as she hugged him.

"I'll say you are." Castle said with a smirk and it was then that Beckett noticed that because of the way she was bending over to hug him he could see down her top.

"Really, Casttle?! At a time like this." She said annoyed as she stood up.

"Sorry, I can't help it if you are so hot." Castle said with a shrug and like that the old Castle was back.

"You had me scared." Beckett admitted as she helped Castle remove the blankets.

"Sorry." Castle said and there was shame all over his face.

"Don't be." Beckett said firmly. "What you are going through is normal, and you will get over it."

"Yeah, I guess so." Castle said doubtfully.

"You will, understand!" Beckett commanded somewhat harshly.

This snapped Castle out of his depression and he looked up at her again. "Yes, Ma'am." He replied.

"The question is what do we do now. It seems like Bracken didn't take the deal." Beckett said gravely.

'We don't know that." Esposito said as he stepped forward from the corner he and Ryan had been standing in. They had decided to give Castle and Beckett a few moments to themselves. "The shooter could have had old orders."

"He's right." Castle agreed. "I think we are going to have to be patient and give it a few days before we will know if the deal is holding or not."

"That is something I am running low on these past few days." Beckett said with a sigh.

"You mean you had some before?" Castle quipped.

"Well I did before I met you. I guess you are just a bad influence on me." Beckett replied, Castle nodded that he agreed with this statement.

"Hey, an armored truck just showed up at the service parking lot out back." Ryan reported. "Gates wants both of you back at the 12th right away."

"Well this should be fun." Castle said sarcasticly.

"You don't know the half of it." Beckett said rolling her eyes but then added. "Still we may as well get it over with."

The four of them had just begun to head to the service entrance when Beckett's cellphone began to ring. She saw that it was Will's number and even though he was the last person she wanted to speak to at the moment she picked up the phone and answered. She had barely time to get her hello out before Will was speaking quickly and he sounded almost panicked. "Kate thank god you are alright."

"Yeah, I am fine. The bullet just got my vest." Kate reported.

"Good, good." Will said and he sounded distracted. "I need to talk to Rick, can you hand him the phone?" Will asked urgently. This was odd, not just Will wanted to talk to Castle but his calling the writer by his first name. Still Beckett agreed and handed the phone to a very confused looking Castle.

"Rick, you have to use your money and move your family out of protection now!" Sorenson ordered.

"Why?" Castle asked clearly confused and worried.

"Because the FBI just fired me and made the agents I had working for me report in on your family's location." Sorenson explained and the fact that he had mentioned losing his job as an afterthought showed just how worried he was.

"What?!" Castle barked clearly shocked.

"My boss said I screwed everything up but that is not important right now, the important thing is that your family's location is known to a lot of people at the FBI now so if Bracken does have people there they will know about it. I don't know if my boss is in on it but before all he and the rest of the FBI knew was that I was using several decoy safe houses and you and your family would be moved the moment there was trouble at any one of them. Now they know which house they are staying in." Sorrenson explained quickly.

"Okay." Castle said and he was just barely holding down the panic. "I have some calls to make." Then he added a little more kindly. "Will, I'm sorry."

"Me too." Will replied with a depressed sigh but then he added. "But that isn't what is important right now, just focus on keeping your family safe."

"Thank you." Was all Castle was able to say before the line went dead.

All eyes were on Castle as he hung up the phone. "We have a big problem." He said.

**Hey sorry about monday and tuesday. Once in a while I will have a day or two where even with my meds my brain will feel like a confused mess and abstract tasks like writing just can't be completed, that is what happened on monday and tuesday. I am really sorry about that.**

**Thanks to everyone who has stuck with this story despite my problems. Thank you all for reading and leaving such kind reviews.**

**Oh and I added a rather nice scene to the last chapter so you may want to go back and reread that.**

**As always thank you all for your support.**

**Thanks once again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter and for pointing out something I had not clearly explained so I could fix it.**


	36. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35**

Ryan was the first to speak after Castle explained the phone call and all he could do was let out a "Wow, this is bad.", Castle nodded that he agreed.

Beckett then made her way around his chair and spoke in a comforting tone. "I don't like letting you out of my sight at the moment but I know you have to do whatever it takes to keep our family safe." This drew a bit of a sigh of relief from Castle, at least she was including herself and her father in the group that needed to be protected. He was afraid he would have to fight her on that point. He didn't get a chance to say anything before Beckett continued. "I have to go in and talk to Gates, we need her on our side, but you do what you have to do."

"Thanks, that means a lot." Castle said gratefully. "The first thing I have to do is call Paterson."

"Why him?" Beckett asked puzzled.

"He once told me that he knew of a security team that handled stuff like this so I am going to see if I can use them to get Alexis, Martha, and your father out of the country for a while." Castle explained and everyone in the room could tell he was struggling to remain calm.

"Well while you are arranging that the safest place to be will be the 12th with us." Beckett stated hopefully.

"Well I am not sure anywhere is safe at the moment." Castle said with a sigh but then he added. "But that is my plan. I can't be everywhere at once and I am sure this team can get into place faster then I can get there. You talk to Gates and I will make my calls."

"Sounds like a plan." Beckett agreed trying to sound more cheerful then she really was.

"Good, and on the way over maybe you can explain just what the hell is going on." Esposito said looking at Beckett and then they all headed for the service exit unsure of exactly what the future held in store for them.

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Bracken smiled to himself when he received the text to his prepaid cellphone. "_Everything in place. Bank records will be gone by end of the day. Simmons safe. Beckett will have no choice but to turn over tape."_ The text read. So it looked like by coming to the city and going public Castle and Beckett had given him a shot at solving all of his problems in one day.

History rewarded those who worked hard and took chances and there was no greater proof then the way events were playing out today. Soon all of his problems would be over and he could get on with the important work that lay ahead. He had stood strong and refused to panic and now he would get his reward that he would share with the nation as a whole.

Life could be good some times.

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"Well Detective, if your goal was to turn my precinct into the set of a soap opera I would say you have done a pretty good job." Captain Gates said sternly, not even waiting for Beckett to close the door before she began reading her the riot act.

"Sir, I am sorry but I only did what I had to in order to keep mine and Mr. Castle's families safe." Beckett stated quietly but firmly.

"Really?" Gates asked with disbelief coating her every word. "So you had to admit that you are in a relationship with the man who has been acting as your partner for the past three years? A man who just happens to be world famous."

"I said that out loud?" Beckett asked as she looked down at the floor, clearly shocked.

"You know there is a reason that officers of the NYPD do not talk to the press directly. You just damaged your reputation and that of every other female officer in the department. It's hard enough for us to make it without people thinking that we are sleeping our way to the top." Gates stated harshly and then added only a little less harshly. "Given your record I don't think this is the case with you and to be honest I was leaning towards reinstating you. However this doesn't look good to the press or my bosses and it makes getting you your job back a hell of a lot harder. At the very least it puts you way out of policy and it looks like you have very poor judgment."

This got a reaction from Beckett, she looked the older woman in the eye and there was fire in her voice. "Sir, I earned my position. My team had the best closure rate in the city for six months before Castle joined our team." Gates looked like she was about to say something that Beckett didn't let her, if she was going down she was going to have her say. "As for Castle, we only entered into a relationship after I was suspended and you yourself said that I am unlikely to get my job back." Then she added with even more fire. "I am sorry for the trouble my confession at the press conference caused, but I meant every word I said. If you will check the records you will see that our closure rate has only gone up since Castle joined the team. I would be willing to bet that no other team in the country closes as many cases as we do a year. So I am proud of every member of my team and that includes Castle."

Gates seemed to consider this for a moment and when she next spoke she was not as angry but she was firm. "Still you were out of policy and I can't pretend that it is likely you will get your job back. I am sorry but facts are facts and even if he were to stay in the precinct in that chair there is no way I could let Mr. Castle continue to work on your team after this."

"Understood, sir." Beckett said doing her best to hide her pain and remain professional. "Still at the moment we have a very dangerous man to take down and a limited window to do it in."

"I agree." Gates said as she sat down behind her desk. "Detectives Ryan and Esposito briefed me before you came in. Do you really think it is Senator Bracken?"

"Yes, I do." Beckett replied with complete conviction and then added pointedly. "Is that going to be a problem for you?"

"Detective, you don't know me and this is a personal case for you so that is the only reason I am going to let that slide but let me explain I joined the force to catch bad guys." Gates said firmly and Beckett could tell she didn't want to be argued with on this point so she remained silent. "I don't care who they are. Yes I had to play some politics to get this job, no one makes captain without playing politics." Gates admitted and then she added firmly. "But I have never let a suspect get away if I could help it."

"Sorry, sir." Beckett said and she suddenly felt ashamed of herself.

"You and I am are going to have to get along." Gates then added a little more kindly. "If Bracken does have people working in the FBI then that means that you and your team are the only people I know I can trust."

"Sir, are you saying what I think you are saying?" Beckett asked and she couldn't help the hint of hope that slipped into her voice.

"What I am saying is that until this case is resolved I am reinstating you." Gates said and her voice didn't betray any emotion. "I will be taking lead on this case, but you and your will be working it with me."

"Thank you, sir." Beckett said and then added. "You will not regret this."

"See that I don't." Gates commanded firmly.

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Outside in the bullpen Castle finished hanging up the phone and he looked worried.

"Is everything alright?" Esposito asked as he and Ryan made their way over to the writer." He and Ryan and just finished putting his old chair into storage so he had room to pull his wheelchair up beside Beckett's desk.

"Yeah, I called the team Paterson told me about and they said they can be at the safe house and have everything ready to move out in about an hour and a half." Castle explained, none too cheerfully.

"Well that is good, right?" Ryan asked puzzled.

"Yeah it is." Castle admitted. "It just seems like a long time to wait and I have to call and explain everything to mother and Alexis."

"I am sure they will understand." Esposito said comfortingly.

"Yeah, I just hate that it has come to this." Castle stated sadly.

"None of us like having to send our families into hiding but it's for the best and it's not our fault they were targeted." Esposito pointed out.

"Yeah, now I just have to make that call." Castle said sadly and he picked up his cellphone and started to dial, leaving Ryan and Esposito to talk amongst themselves.

"Can you believe that it is Bracken? I voted for the guy." Ryan said with disbelief and regret all over his face.

"I don't think there are many cops who didn't vote for him, he played us all." Esposito said with an angry scowl.

"Still it is another thing I am responsible for." Ryan said with shame all over his face.

"Listen to me." Esposito said firmly. "You made a mistake, it happens. Everyone screws up at some point but none of this is your fault." Ryan looked at his friend as if he didn't believe him so Esposito continued. "Yeah, you screwed up. But it was Bracken that killed Cauldwell not you. If you want to honor his memory then you help nail that Bastard."

"Yeah, but I will always blame myself." Ryan replied sadly.

"I know." Esposito said with understanding in his voice and then he added. "But you can't let it destroy the rest of your life."

"I'll try." Ryan answered honestly it was at that point that their attention was called back to Castle who had just let out a soft chuckle.

"Yes, Pumpkin. Both myself and Beckett are completely fine." Castle said answering a question coming from the other end of the line. "But you understand what you need to do?" He asked his daughter.

"Yes, dad don't worry. We will get everything packed. Just please be careful and wrap this up quick so I can come home." Alexis replied and Castle could tell she was worried.

"I will." Castle replied and that was followed by a moment of silence. "Alexis are you still there?" He asked.

"Yes, it's just a couple of vans pulled into the driveway." Alexis said.

"The security team shouldn't be there yet." Castle said sounding worried. "Alexis get to the panic room."

"I am sure it is nothing, dad." Alexis said with a laugh but then she was interrupted by a loud bang.

"Alexis? ALEXIS?!" Castle yelled into the phone but the line was dead.

**Well that is chapter 35. I hope you enjoyed it and thank you all for reading reviewing.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help betaing this chapter. Also for showing me that I made some mistakes with the Gates dialog that put her out of character so I could correct them. **

**To everyone who leaves a review I would just like to say all of your feedback helps me make the story better and if I have written someone OOC I want to know and you guys let me know, so thanks a bunch, you are all a huge help when it comes to writing this story.**


	37. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36**

When Kate Beckett had heard that she had said what she was barely able to admit she felt in private in front of the national press a big part of her had wanted to climb under a rock and hide. This was way too much too fast, the relationship and her life were spinning out of control and she needed to get her bearings. It wasn't that she regretted the relationship or wanted it to end. It was just she couldn't risk this one going down the drain just because she and Castle had moved too fast in a time of high stress. Then there was the fact that every aspect of their new relationship would now be in the public eye. She had always hated the lime light, in fact that had been one of the reason that despite her looks and how popular it made her at school her teenage job as a model had not lasted. Everyone assumed she was comfortable in front of people but in reality it had taken a lot of tutoring from her training officer to make her comfortable in front of people. That was when the feelings of love she had started to have had first begun.

Still she had developed a public persona and her private life and feelings were still private. Yes, that had been invaded when Castle had first started to write the Nikki Heat books. Then it had died down. Now she knew it wouldn't be dying down. She was now on record as being in love with one of the most famous men in the world, and that was big. Her face would now be on the cover of every tabloid in the country, maybe even the world. She had always had to fight to get both cops and suspects respect because of sexist assumptions on their part that were compounded by her good looks. Now those problems would multiply a hundred fold if she got her job back. It didn't sound like the new captain wanted her back, she needed time to herself to think. Still when Gates had attacked her and Castle she had lashed out defensively. Like her public confession she had not meant to do this, but being accused of sleeping her way to the top had always been a sore point with her. Yes, she had Royce had shared something special but he had not been the kind of man who would let her out on the street if she wasn't ready just because of that. Also after everything Castle had done for her and seeing the toll it had taken on him when he had shut down not even half an hour before had left Kate feeling protective of him. So she had jumped to his defense. Still she needed some quite time to think, but that was just what she was not going to get.

Ryan had barged into the office and simply stated that something was wrong at the safe house. Beckett had forgotten her own problems at that moment and rushed out. It was then that she saw a panic stricken Castle desperately dialing and redialing numbers on his cellphone. She knelt before him and snatched the phone away from his hand, forcing him to look her in the eyes. When she spoke it was with the same calming tone that she used to ask questions of relatives of victims of murder. "Castle, what is wrong?"

"It's Alexis." Castle said brokenly. "They have come for her."

"Okay." Beckett said taken a moment to calm her own panic, not only did she care for Alexis but she knew her own father was in danger. Still she needed facts so that was what she focused on getting. "Tell me what happened exactly."

"Two vans." Castle said as he just barely held his on panic in check long enough to answer her question. "Sounded like pros and then a second later there was an explosion and now I can't get ahold of anyone."

"Okay." Beckett said as she took in the facts. "They need them alive so that was most likely a flash bang. They wouldn't risk killing them." Beckett said forcefully as much for herself as for Castle.

Castle just looked at her in stunned silence and Beckett could tell he needed something to do. "Keep trying to call them." She instructed as she handed him back his phone and then she added a promise. "We will get them back." She then stood up and turned around to find Gates already giving orders. She had to admit the new captain at least seemed to be on the ball.

"Get the address from Detective Beckett and alert local PD, make sure they know what they are walking into. Then alert the FBI." She barked out and then she turned to Beckett and spoke in just as commanding if a little gentler tone. "Have your boyfriend get in touch with his press contacts and let them know that there is either a kidnapping or a hostage situation at the safe give them the address."

"Sir, what good will that do?" Beckett asked puzzled. Normally adding the press into this kind of situation ended badly.

"The FBI can sideline local PD and if you are right about Bracken having people in the FBI then having the media will make it harder for them to harm your families and make it look like another Waco." The older woman explained, Beckett nodded that she understood. Next she turned to Ryan and Esposito and quickly gave them the address and the information Castle had given her. She then returned to the man in the wheelchair and explained the plan to him. She was distressed to learn that he had not been able to get a hold of anyone but he had nodded that he understood. He then did his best to calm himself down and made some calls.

As Castle was making his calls Beckett went to join Gates and the rest of her team who had gathered in front of Gates office, Esposito began giving a brief report. "Local PD and the FBI have been alerted, the local cops are aware that they are dealing with a hostage situation and that the Perps are pros." He reported calmly. It was then that Ryan was called away to his desk to answer his phone. Esposito continued. "However this kind of crime is rare in Delaware so the nearest SWAT team is almost an hour out." This was not good everyone knew it but they all refused to admit it.

Ryan then returned to the group and he had a puzzled and worried look on his face. "I put out an APB and asked to be informed if anyone missing a thumb turned up in a local hospital or was caught committing a crime." He explained.

"Please tell me we have a lead." Beckett responded desperately.

"Yeah, we do but I don't think it makes any sense." Ryan replied and then he continued. "Several 911 calls just came in from the Citizen's Saving and Trust bank, reporting that five men just entered and began to rob the place and now they are holding everyone there hostage inside. Two of the callers agree that the ringleader is missing one of his thumbs."

"Why would they rob a bank in the middle of all of this?" Esposito asked.

Beckett thought for a moment and then she spoke gravely as she suddenly understood the big picture. "Because that is where Bracken's dirty account is."

"They plan to use the hostage situation to cover up the destruction of the records." Castle said as he rolled up to the group, finishing Beckett's thought. In any other situation Beckett would have enjoyed the fact that her other half was building theories with her again, but not now. Other half, the thought echoed in her mind. Was that what he really was, had he been right when he said there was no going back? Wasn't this all moving too quickly to be healthy. These thoughts were pushed aside by Castle's next word which drew her back into the present situation. "I know how this story ends. They take our families and the proof and in a few hours we will have nothing. Checkmate."

**Well there is chapter 36.**

**Once again thank you all for your kind support. I am sorry that I have not had time to repsond to every review in person, but I do read them all and they all are a big help encourage me to keep writing.**

**Thank you for each and every review and PM and thank you all for reading.**

**See you in the next chapter.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	38. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37**

"We aren't beaten yet, and we are not going to be." Beckett stated firmly with pure conviction in her voice.

"Have the prints come back from that gun yet?" Gates asked looking over at Ryan.

"Yeah, they came in about an hour ago and I was just having a background check run so we would know something about him besides his name." Ryan reported.

"We don't have time for background checks. We have to do something now." Castle barked out and there was an angry look in his eyes that Beckett had never seen before and if she was being honest it scared her.

"We are doing everything we can but we need facts to go on, Mr. Castle." Gates said firmly but calmly. "I am a parent myself and I can't imagine how you must feel right now but you are not going to help your daughter by flying off the handle."

"I have to do something." Castle spat back.

"We are doing something but it is going to take time." Beckett said as she bent down and looked Castle in the eyes.

It was at that moment that Esposito returned to the conversation with a few pieces of paper and a photo fresh off the printer in his hands. "We just got our background check. The man's name is Is Cedric Marx but he sometimes goes by the alias Cole Maddox, he is Ex special forces black ops and it looks like he is a gun for hire now working for the highest bidder." Esposito reported as he placed the photo of a very stern looking man on the murder board. Seeing the face of the man who had shot him for the first time, even if it was just a photo caused a shiver of fear to run down Castle's spine. Still the thought of Alexis in danger covercame this as his mind started to work.

"That doesn't really help us. All we know is that he is a pro and he has a bank full of hostages." Castle pointed out, now sounding depressed. The writer's mood was swinging back and forth at this point and truth be told he was ashamed to admit he had no real control over his emotions at that moment.

"Maybe it does." Beckett said as she looked at the photo thoughtfully.

"What are you thinking?" Castle asked desperately.

"I can't see Marx or any team of his being willing to spend the rest of their lives in prison for whatever Bracken is paying them." Beckett began to explain.

"They must have a plan to get out of the bank and past the police." Castle said as he saw things clearly.

"We just have to figure out what that is and we have a chance of stopping them and if we can catch Marx he can testify against Bracken." Beckett finished the thought.

"Assuming anyone believes the word of a bank robbing hostage taker over that of a Senator." Ryan pointed out.

"Right we have to catch him with contact information for Bracken or someone who works for Bracken on him to make this stick." Esposito agreed.

"Do you really think Bracken would be that sloppy?" Castle asked.

"He has to receive his order somehow and he gets paid so there will be a link, we just have to catch him." Beckett said firmly. She was now in her element, she had leads to work. Her father was in danger and that was killing her, but there was also something she could do about it. He was too far away for her to get to him in time to be of any help and that was killing her, but at the same time she didn't have to sit on the sidelines either.

"There is another angle that we should work as well." Gates said firmly taking command of the situation. "Banks have off site back up for all of their records so just deleting the files at the bank would get them anywhere. Marx must have a plan for getting rid of those records as well."

"You are right." Castle said and suddenly he liked the new captain.

Gates turned to Ryan. "Get in touch with management from the bank and tell them that we need to make back up copies of all of their records."

"We will need a warrant." Ryan pointed out.

"Leave that to me." Castle said quickly as he pulled out his cellphone, drawing an annoyed look from Gates. The captain clearly didn't like how he played the system but at that moment Castle didn't care. "There is an advantage to being owed favors by half the judges in town. We will have a warrant."

Ryan then left to make his calls from his desk while Castle made his from his phone.

"Get blueprints of the bank if there are any and we need to know exactly how the police are deployed." Gates ordered as she turned to Esposito.

"Yes, Sir." Esposito said and left to do his work.

"We also need to find some way to get eyes in the bank so we know exactly what is going on. Those hostages are still in real danger even if the robbery is fake." Beckett pointed out.

"Yes, I know. Hopefully the team on the ground can help us with that." Gates agreed.

It was a few minutes latter when Esposito returned with some blueprints and a map of where every police officer at the scene was deployed and stuck it in the murder board. Beckett and Gates were studying the map carefully when Castle rolled up beside them.

"Your warrant will be signed and faxed over in a few minutes." Castle reported and Beckett was just about to respond when her phone rang and the caller I.D showed a number she didn't know. She picked up her phone and answered it.

"Hello?" She asked puzzled and it was a moment before she heard a voice she knew all too well and her heart leaped for joy for just a second.

"Katie, they said you were alright on the news but I had to call you." Jim Beckett said sounding a little panicked.

"Dad, where are you? What is going on?" Kate asked desperately as she removed the phone from her ear and pushed the button for the speaker phone function.

"What's happened to Alexis and my Mother?" Castle demanded before Jim had a chance to answer.

"They are fine, they are in the panic room with me." Jim reported.

"Just them, what about Kelly?" Castle asked urgently, and Beckett felt a little ashamed that she had completely forgotten about the young woman.

"I don't know, there was so much chaos. All I know is that she is not in here with us." Jim answered honestly.

"What happened? We need to know." Kate asked as she struggled to remain calm.

"I am not completely sure we were attacked but some sort of team, I think there were a dozen or so of them." Jim replied.

"Could you tell what kind of weapons they had?" Kate asked falling back on her training and getting as much information as she could about the situation.

"They looked military and the guys were wearing vests." Jim reported and Kate wrote down the number and that information on the pad of paper she carried with her everywhere.

"What happened to Alexis, we were cut off." Castle demanded once again.

"She was stunned by what I think was a flashbang but your mother and I got her into the panic room while the FBI guys held the team off." Jim reassured the writer.

"Why didn't you pick up when we tried to call you." Kate asked.

"I think they must be jamming cell signals, all of our phones went dead. I am speaking to you from the land line in the panic room." Jim explained.

"Do you have any idea what is going on outside?" Castle asked.

"Not, really." Jim admitted gravely. "They took out the cameras and I think the FBI team is dead, we heard a lot of gunfire as she got into the panic room and we can hear a few muted sounds as if someone is outside the door."

"Help is on the way, Dad. Please just hang on!" Kate ordered desperately and she couldn't help the panic that slipped into her voice or the tears that were beginning to well up in her eyes.

"Don't worry, we will make it." Jim said trying to reassure his daughter but not sounding too sure of the promise he had just made himself and then he added on a more emotional note. "Kate I am so sorry I let you down and we didn't have more time together. I should hav" Then the line went dead and tears began to fall down Kate's cheeks.

Castle took her right hand in his and looking up at her began to speak in a comforting tone. "They couldn't have gotten into the panic room yet. They must have just found and cut the land line." The fact that Castle was trying to comfort her when he had more to lose then she did filled Beckett with amazement and she decided that if Castle could pull himself together then so could she. So she reached up and dried her eyes and called on her training to calm herself.

"I know." Was all she said in reply and then she made her way back over to the murder board to work the case that she could do something about. Suddenly she wished she wasn't so stubborn and she had stayed with her dad, she could have done something then. Still she had to deal with the situation that she had, not the one she wished she had. So she looked at the board and she couldn't for the life of her see how Marx planned to get away, but she knew there must be a plan. She just had to find it.

"A tech team is on their way to meet with the bank's vice president and back up the records." Ryan reported as he walked up to the murder board. In his darkest thoughts he had to wonder if he could of stopped all of this just by not panicking the day before. One thing was for sure Marx would not be loose and they would have had a good lead. The fact that they had lost Madox was on him and he had to make it right.

Gates reentered the bullpen after being called away to the phone in her office. "Detective are you up to interrogating a suspect?" Gates asked Beckett and her tone showed that she was concerned.

"Yes, sir." Beckett replied firmly and wiped the last signs of her inner distress off of her face.

"Good because a man in being brought up by uniforms." This drew surprised looks from everyone in the room so Gates continued to explain. "He just walked up to the front desk and turned himself in and he is asking to speak to detective Beckett."

"Who is this guy?" Castle asked completely puzzled, this made no sense.

"He claims his name is Vulcan Simmons." Gates replied and that sent an even bigger shock through the room. This made no sense but they were back with a fighting chance and that gave everyone a new sense of hope and purpose. They had a chance of ending all of this today. Assuming nothing else went wrong, Castle just hoped winning this war would not cost him the lives of his mother and daughter. That was a price he couldn't live with paying and he knew Kate wouldn't make it through her father's death. Still they had a chance now, he just had to hope things play out smoothly from here on out.

**Okay that is chapter 37, I hope you liked it.**

**As always thank you all for reading and reviewing, it really is a big help.**

**A Big thank you to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter. Not only for the spelling but for pointing out that Cole Madox was an alias and that I had lost track of Kelly in my story. I have now fixed those two mistakes. The next chapter is coming it is just taking me some time to get it to the point where I am happy with it since I have never really written an interrogation scene before but it is coming.**

**Thank you all for bearing with me and for your support.**


	39. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38**

Detective Kate Beckett had to fight to hide her revulsion for the man who was sitting on the other side of the table and giving her a sick smile as she entered the interrogation room. She wanted to punch him and she also wanted to throw up, but she stuck to her training and didn't let him see any of this. All she let him see was a solid unfeeling wall that there was no way past. Her wall that had kept her safe all these years had also made her one of the best at her job and despite the fact that had nearly cost her the most important relationship in her life she was still glad she had it. At times like this her wall was very useful and she couldn't get by without out it. It was at that moment that she knew the trick she would have to learn for the rest of her life would have to be how to take the wall down when she clocked out of work for the day. That was something she still was not sure she knew how to do. For now that wasn't the problem she had to deal with, so she pushed this thought aside and she sat down at the desk and didn't let the slimy drug dealer see a single emotion on her face.

"You people never learn." Simmons spoke first and it was clear his tactic was going to be to try and dominate the conversation, Beckett knew that the first thing she would have to do is take away that sense of control, so she waited for a chance to do just that. "I told you not to mess with the animals but you didn't listen and it got your boss and boyfriend shot." Simmons continued smugly.

Beckett had to fight every instinct in her body to not charge across the table and slam him against the wall. Instead she remained perfectly calm on the outside. "Well if that is all you have to say I guess we are done here." She said standing up. "We will just book you for the ten thousand dollars worth of cocain we found in the trunk of the car you brought here."

"Wait..What?" Simmons demanded and he was clearly shocked, this was good and Beckett moved in for the kill.

"Here is a tip for the future. Don't drive your own car to the parking structure of a police precinct just to taunt the cops when you are transporting large amounts of drug in it." Beckett said with sarcasm dripping from every word. This revelation had been worth taking the extra fifteen minutes to prepare as it had just the effect she was hoping for, it put Simmons on the defensive.

"You search my car without a warrant, Girl you now that is not going to stand up in court." Simmons said and he was trying to remain smug and keep control of the situation but there was a hint of desperation in his voice so Beckett closed in for the kill.

"Oh we got a warrant." Beckett said and now it was her turn to sound smug. "Haven't your heard the city is being attacked left and right by terrorists. We had to be sure there wasn't an explosive device of some sort in your car."

"On TV you said it wasn't terrorist." Simmons pointed out.

"That was a personal statement I made, the official story is still terrorist." Beckett explained calmly as she locked her unflinching gaze on Simmons from across the table. "So if that is all you have I guess I'll see you in ten to twenty." She said and then she turned to leave, that was when Simmons spoke up.

"I come here to do you a favor and this is how you treat me?" He asked in disbelief.

"You really think I care about you drug dealing activities?" Beckett said turning once more to face him but staying one pace away from the door. "I work homicide, turn yourself into vice if you want to do someone a favor."

"I was told to only turn myself into you." Simmons objected.

"Who told you to turn yourself in to us?" Beckett asked and it was her turn to be shocked.

"The same guy who capped six of my boys." Simmons explained and that got Beckett's full attention and walked back over to the table.

"You are telling me there are six fresh homicides somewhere out there and you know who committed them?" She asked.

"I don't, but I think you do." Simmons said smugly. "It seems like you can't do your own dirty work. What is the matter, afraid you would break a nail."

"I have no idea who you are talking about, tell me everything." Beckett demanded.

"Not so fast, first I want a deal." Simmons said as he took control of the conversation once again. "I don't want to end up dead like everyone else and I don't want to go to prison."

"You know I can't make a promise like that. A deal like that is up to the DA. Tell me what happened and I may put in a good word for you." Beckett explained as she danced a delicate waltz to try and regain control of the situation.

"Not good enough." Simmons replied firmly. "My lawyer is on her way here, you get a signed deal to me that she likes and then I will tell you everything."

"Look we have you dead to rights." Beckett pointed out her eyes going cold. "And my guess is that you wouldn't last five minutes in county lock up, so I am your only hope of making it through the day alive."

"Well I guess that put us in the same boat." Simmons said as a cocky half smile played across his lips. "Then again my boyfriend wasn't just shot and my family isn't in danger." Simmons pointed out and then he closed in for the kill. "I guess the real question is how much are you willing to lose just to spite me?"

"I would have to have some idea of what is on offer." Beckett replied firmly, not letting the impact of what Simmons had just said show on her face.

"I think you know or you wouldn't of sent the old guy after me." Simmons replied calmly.

"I have no idea who you are talking about." Beckett maintained. In truth she thought she had a pretty good idea of who he was talking about. Castle had told her everything about the man who had broken into their motel room in the privacy of the bathroom once he had woken her up. So far she and now it seemed Simmons were the only people besides Castle who seemed to have seen this guy and lived to tell the tale. Suddenly she was worried about Castle who she knew was watching from the other side of the glass. This man was claiming to be his father after all and on top of everything else that was happening she knew that being reminded of this man was the last thing he needed. They had run a background check that had come up without any hits that matched the guy who had talked to Castle. Still all that proved was that he was hiding behind an alias, that didn't prove he was telling the truth or could be trusted. It now seemed like he was the chief suspect in half a dozen homicides, so now it was her duty as a cop to arrest him even if he was telling the truth. Castle would know this and that would make everything much harder on him. Suddenly she just wanted to get out of this room and make sure he was okay, still she couldn't let Simmons see any of that. The lives of her father, Martha, and Alexis rode on her getting information out of Simmons so she had to focus on that. Simmons next words also helped bring her back to the problem at hand.

"If that is the way you want to play it, fine." Simmons said with a snort. "This old guy burst into the loft I was just chilling at and one by one he took out six of my guys."

"You don't seem to broken up about it." Beckett replied, if there is one thing she always had trouble with it was seeing just how cheap human life was to some people.

"Shit happens." Was the only explanation Simmons gave with a shrug. "Then he told me to drive my car in here and turn myself in to you and that if I didn't the same person you are after would get me and if that guy didn't he would. Sounds like you know exactly who he is to me."

"I have no idea who this person is." Beckett said firmly.

"So some random outsider decides to pull all of this mayhem just for you?" Simmons asked with disbelief all over his face. "You two have a thing or something, because you must have been unbelievable for him to go to all this trouble for you." Simmons said and the look on his face reminded her of every boy in high school who had ever hit on her or snickered at some dirty joke they had made as she walked past.

"Who is it that you can give me information on?" Beckett pressed, she refused to give him any more power over her by rising to his bait.

"You know who it is. You have known all along, after all you have all the stuff he is after." Simmons replied and giving the shock of that statement he added. "You did a good job pretending you had no idea what was going on the last time I was here. I guess you had to protect your boss, still it didn't save him. He's worm chow now."

This caused Beckett to snap and charged around the table with pure hatred in her eyes. She grabbed Simmons by his shirt and stood him up as much as she could with him handcuffed to the table. "You listen to me!" She said through gritted teeth. "This is very personal for me so you stop playing games with me right now or you go to county and you die."

"I guess I touched a nerve." Simmons said with a smile. "You have a thing with him too? Do you just bounce the bedspreads with every older guy who crosses your path?"

Beckett snapped and she lashed out hitting him in the face. "Tell me who you are talking about?!" She demanded and the next thing she knew she was being grabbed by two men, she had gone tunnel visioned so it wasn't until she was out in the hall that she figured out that it was Ryan and Esposito who had grabbed her and were telling her to take it easy. She did however hear Simmons make a couple of other lewd comments and then say that he would talk once he had a deal.

Beckett was catching her breath and getting control of herself when Castle rolled up beside her. "You okay?" He asked with concern showing all over his face.

"I just blew our best chance of getting Alexis, Martha, and my father back alive. No, I am not okay." Beckett replied and she couldn't look at him at that moment. He could lose his daughter all because she had acted like a rookie.

"No, you didn't." Castle maintained and it was clear from his tone he was having trouble keeping his own emotions in check. "I wanted to go through that glass and beat him after you had been in there for thirty seconds, I am surprised you kept control as long as you did."

"We have nothing, again." Beckett said still not looking at Castle.

"Not true, we now know that whoever this guy is he thinks Simmons can bring down Bracken and now we just have to get the DA to make a deal." Castle said calmly and then he added thoughtfully. "What do you think he meant when he accused you of putting on an act the last time he was here?"

"I don't know." Beckett admitted still not looking at the man who sat beside her. "I mean clearly he thinks I have some proof that Bracken is behind this but for some reason I haven't taken it to the DA or anyone else. Maybe he thinks that because of the press conference."

"Could be." Castle agreed with a nod but after giving it a moment's thought he added. "Still there was something about the way he said it that made it sound like he thought you knew all along."

"Well I didn't." Beckett replied sadly.

"Kate, look at me." Castle pleaded and she had no choice but to turn and look down at him and see the conviction in his eyes. "We are going to get them out of this, we just have to keep working the case. Please do that with me."

"Okay." Beckett replied a moment later and then she forced her wall back up, something that was getting harder and harder for her to do when Castle was around but she had to go into cop mode if she was going to be able to work this case. "We can't do anything until Simmons' lawyer gets here and we get a deal from the DA's office so lets go check on the hostage situation." Beckett said becoming all business, she had noticed Ryan and Esposito rush past them without talking a minute or two ago.

"Yeah, let's wrap this case up." Castle replied.

A few moments later they were in Gates' office listening to Esposito give the older woman a briefing on the situation on the ground. "It seems that the hostage takers claim to be working for a terrorist organization call Islamic Dawn and they claim the bank is moving money around for the Jews and have demanded access to all of the banks records in order to prove it."

"Well that is clearly a cover story. Marx is not a terrorist." Gates stated simply.

"Still the feds are not taking any chances." Esposito agreed with a nod. "They had just taken over when I got off of the phone with the commander on the scene."

"What about the hostages?" Castle asked concerned.

"There are about two dozen of them and they have been moved to the back of the bank near the vault where there aren't any windows and since the security cameras were taken out we don't have eyes on them right now." Esposito reported gravely.

"Sounds like the place is going to have to be stormed, that could get messy." Gates observed grimly and everyone observed a moment of silence while the mental image of what they knew that would result in played in their heads.

"That may not be possible." Esposito stated simply. "Snipers spotted one of the suspects placing what looked like C4 on the doors and windows and they claim to have more explosives attached to the hostages and if the building is stormed they say they will blow them all."

"Sounds like they they plan to kill everyone any way, at least that is what I would assume if I was in charge." Beckett said, voicing the thought that was in everyone's minds.

"Well they are saying they will wound a hostage every five minutes their demands are not met, but if any move is made on the bank they will kill everyone." Esposito explained.

"So the feds have a reason to give in, since they don't know the goal is to erase records." Gates observed.

"Yeah pretty much." Esposito agreed.

"Nothing about this makes sense." Beckett let out a frustrated grown as she began to pace back and forth running her hand through her hair. "This is still either a suicide mission or they go to prison for life and we know Bracken isn't paying them enough to do that. What is their exit plan?"

"Beats, me." Esposito said with a shrug. "Ryan checked and there are not any sewer tunnels or anything like that they could escape into by blowing a hole in the floor of the bank or anything like that and they are surrounded on all sides. As far as we can tell there is no way out."

Castle looked like he was about to say something when Ryan came entered and his face was grave. "I have more bad news." He said sadly.

"This seems to be the day for it." Castle observed.

"The two techs we sent to copy data from the bank's back up servers reported that some sort of virus was already lose and it completely bricked the drives." Ryan reported gravely.

"So we have nothing again." Beckett said throwing her hands in the air and then she turned to Gates. "Sir you have to get the DA to make that deal with Simmons."

"I am trying but the DA doesn't want to let him off Scott free and after your little display in there he isn't talking without his lawyer." Gates replied and to Beckett's surprise there wasn't any judgment in her voice. Clearly she was mature enough to deal with the problem they had at the moment and leave everything else until families and hostages were safe.

"This doesn't make sense." Castle said as he tapped his fingers on his wheelchair. He was clearly getting ants in his pants and needed to move. Becket looked down at him as he continued to explain. "If they had a way to get to the servers why on earth stage a hostage situation?" Castle asked the room frustratedly and he he began drumming his fingers harder and and trying to move his upper body. That was when Beckett spotted it, it was small but it had clearly happened and what she saw filled her heart with pure joy for a brief second and had her believing that maybe there was hope after all.

"Castle did you feel that?" She asked excitedly as she smiled down at him.

"Did I feel what?" Castle asked confused.

"Your left foot, it just tapped up and down twice." Beckett explained

"Really, let me see if I can do it again." Castle replied stunned and he tried with all his might to will his foot to move but nothing happed.

"It's okay if you can't make it happen but this means you will get better." She said excitedly and to her relief Castle seemed to focus on the positive.

"Now we really need to solve this case." He said. "I am getting my life back."

"The question still remains, how did the virus get into the servers and why didn't they use the same virus in the bank?" Ryan asked pulling them both back down to earth. The guilt he was feeling over Cauldwell's death was driving him and he wouldn't let himself take his eye off of the prize until this was ll over and Bracken was behind bars.

"Are those bank servers connected to the internet?" Gates asked and clearly an idea was forming in her head.

"No, you have to go in and but data on them via flash drive." Ryan reported.

"Did either of the tech volunteer for this job?" Gates asked.

"Yeah, Jacobs." Ryan replied and suddenly everyone in the room got a sinking feeling. They didn't like where this was going at all. "He wasn't supposed to be working today but he was in here catching up on some paper work and since he is the best we have I sent him."

"Sir, it can't be. We have all worked with him for years." Esposito objected but his tone betrayed the fact that he was trying to convince himself and not Gates.

"When you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains however improbable, must be the truth." Castle quoted quietly.

"That is the first rule of this job." Gates agreed and then she began barking out orders. "Jacobs did it. Ryan and Esposito find out everything you can about him. I want a solid case when we bring him in."

"Sir, this means we need Simmons to talk now more then ever. We have to get that deal." Beckett pointed out urgently.

"I'm already on it." Gates said as she picked up the phone on her desk. "You two should check up on your family. There should be some news from either the feds or the local police by now." Gates instructed as she shooed them out of her office. The grim reminder of just how bad things were was not welcomed by either of them but they knew they had a chance now things were up in the air but they were still in the fight and she had to believe they would get their family back.

She and Castle just made it to her desk when a uniformed office got her attention. "Detective I have a visitor for you." Standing beside the office was a man in a drab business suit, it was Will Sorrenson.

"Kate, and you are here too. That is good." Sorrenson looking from Beckett to the writer in the wheelchair.

"I am so sorry. I should have stalled. I didn't think they could act this fast." He said with remorse in his eyes and Castle was touched. Clearly the thought of becoming a father himself had changed something in this man. Castle could relate, he was a jerk before Alexis had been born. This caused his mind to wonder just for a second. Not everyone was so rich they could afford not to work and this man had a baby on the way and he had just lost his job.

"It's not your fault, you did everything you could." Castle said firmly.

Sorrenson nodded but he looked like he wasn't quite sure he believed the writer. Still guilt was not the reason he was here so he got down to business. "I just got a call back from Kelly and I think you two should talk to her." He explained.

"How bad are things?" Beckett asked, but she didn't really want answers because she knew they couldn't be good.

"Very bad, Some sort of hit team has attacked the safe house and they got into the panic room." Sorrenson replied and with Castle froze as all hope left his body and soul.

**Okay that was chapter 38.**

**I am sorry it took so long but I have never really written an interrogation scene before so it took me about a dozen tries to to get this thing in shape and I am still not happy with it. Still it was the best I could do.**

**Thank you all for hanging in there and for leaving reviews, I read each one even if I don't have time to answer them. They are all a huge help, so thank you all so much for your support.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for catching my mistakes.**


	40. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39**

When Kelly spoke it was with an unmistakable tone of guilt. "Rick and Kate I am so sorry I tried to stop them but it all happened so fast."

Beckett forced herself to remain calm, she could tell Castle was going back into shock so she quickly asked the question that was on both of their minds. "It's okay, Kelly. Just tell us what happened." Beckett instructed.

After a brief pause Kelly began. "Well I decided to take a walk in the woods since you and Rick left me here and I guess there is a dead zone out there because my phone didn't ring but when I came out of the woods there was a message from Will warning me that the location of the safe house was known." Kelly explained and then she added on a more personal note. "I should have stayed at the house, I am so sorry."

"If you had been there they would have just killed you too." Will injected firmly. "There was nothing you could have done and I don't want to have to explain to the family what happened to you."

Beckett decided to leave aside the questions Will's comment left her with and instead get Kelly to finish the story. She knew that if Castle was going to find any peace he would need to know the story, so that was what she focused on. "So the FBI agents are dead?" Beckett asked gravely.

"Oh God, yes they are dead!" Kelly half sobbed into the phone. "When I finished listening to Will's message I saw Pertwee, Baker, and McCoy running towards the house. I went to the command center to get a vest and a pistol. By the time I left I heard shots being fired and I saw your Mr. Beckett, Ms. Rodgers, and Alexis being shoved in the back of one of the vans, I fired several shots but it was too late."

"It's okay." Beckett said gently trying to calm the girl who was clearly about to have a break down on the other end of the phone. This had to be the first time she had fired her gun outside of a practice range and Beckett knew all too well that most people either froze on their first time or they broke down after it was all over. The human brain didn't want to be in danger or take other lives and it thought against a kill or be killed reality, preferring to run and hide if at all possible. Still she couldn't have Kelly breaking down yet, she needed the whole story so she did her best to keep the younger woman on track. "Kelly you did everything you could, now I know this is hard but we need you to tell us the rest."

"Okay." Kelly said with a sniff and a moment later she continued. "I found them in the hall and they had all been shot dead. There was so much blood!" Kelly then let out a small cry but before anyone could say anything she continued on her own. "It looked like whoever these people were they drilled their way past the lock on the panic room door, it didn't look like they had used explosive."

"Thanks that's helpful, you did great." Will said and there was a hint of pride in his voice and Beckett had to once again wonder just what the story was here, still that could wait for another time.

"I had better go, the state police are all over the place and they want my statement." Kelly explained. "I will try to find out what I can and then get back to you." Kelly said and then the line went dead.

Beckett then turned to Will and spoke quickly. "There can not be that many people who know how to drill past the lock of a panic room door that quickly. Someone on the team may have worked for the company that installed the panic room for the FBI. Will is there anyone you can reach out to in order to find out what company built that panic room so we can look at people who worked for them?" Beckett asked, and she knew she was asking a lot but at that moment she didn't care.

"I am already on it." Will said as he pulled out his cellphone. "I lost my job, not my friends and contacts."

Beckett then turned to Castle, she saw in his eyes that he was lost so she bent down and looked him in the eye and spoke the only words of comfort she had to give. "We will get them back."

Castle didn't respond to her words but a second later the look in his eyes was replaced with a cold resolve. He then silently moved his wheel chair. Beckett followed him as he made his way into the empty break room. He then positioned his chair in front of the counter on which the expresso machine that he had bought for the precinct sat, a sad reminder of happier more carefree days the likes of which Beckett had to wonder if they would ever see again. Castle then spoke but Beckett was shocked to hear that he wasn't addressing here, but the room.

"I know you planted a bug on either my chair or my cellphone, that is what I would do if I were you." Castle's voice was cold and full of anger, when he spoke it scared Beckett because it seemed like the normally gentle man who was sitting in front of her and refusing to look at her could do anything. "I don't know who you really are but I know you want Bracken and that you think Kate and I are the key to that, so listen. My family has been taken with Kate's dad, I will not let anything happen to them. If I get a message from Bracken I will do whatever he wants to keep my family safe. The only way I go on with this is if we meet and you have a plan that I like. If that doesn't happen, then this is all over, Bracken can be President of the world for all I care as long as Alexis and my mother are safe."

When Castle turned to face her Beckett saw the resolve in his eyes and she knew that arguing with him was useless, so she decided not to debate if he had made the right move, if there was an address, or if this man was even on their side. Instead she focused on the one thought that had been eating at the back of her mind since she had interviewed Simmons. "Castle you do know that if we find this guy I will have to arrest him, he is the chief suspect in half a dozen homicides that we know of."

"I know." Castle said and his voice had a disturbing calm. "That is why you will not go, I will go alone."

"Like hell." Beckett barked at him in shock. "We don't know who this guy is, and you said we would finish this together."

"Beckett I will not have you breaking any more rules for me." Castle said and for the first time since she had known him he was speaking as if he could give her orders.

"My father is out there too and it's my mother's murder that got us into this mess!" Beckett objected.

"But he may not show up if he knows you or anyone else will be there." Castle said firmly and his voice was going cold again. "Plus I need the best working the case from here, and that is you." Beckett saw his point and there was a logic to it. "We have to work both ends and there is no one else I trust to get Alexis and my mother back from this end." Castle added a little more gently.

"Okay." Beckett replied her voice just below a whisper. "I am going to go out there and see what else we know, you coming?"

"I need a minute and I need to call my car service so they will be standing by if this guy contacts me." Castle replied.

Beckett nodded that she understood and then she left and made her way across the bullpen and into Gates' office.

When she entered Gates had just put down her phone and she turned to face the detective. "How are you two holding up?" She asked and Beckett saw some of the older woman's armor drop away in that second. "Okay." She lied. "I can do my job."

"Well then you should know the news is not good." Gates said returning to all business. "The vans were found on fire in a field about five miles from the safe house. The fires have just been put out and so state police CSUs are going over them now but they don't expect to find anything." Beckett nodded that she understood. "From the way the grass was disturbed it looks like they may have been picked up by a couple of helicopters. The state police and the FBI are looking into it and the coast guard has been alerted in case they try to get away on a boat but there is a lot of traffic this time of year."

"Thank you, sir." Was all Beckett could say she was having to put aside her own shock just to get through this but it was creeping up on her and in truth she didn't know how much longer she could hold things together, the past couple of weeks had been nothing but pure stress and she needed it to be over. She needed everyone she knew to be safe, she needed to be safe, she needed to be able to sleep until next spring before she got up again. Still none of that would happen if she didn't push forward on this case so that was what she had to do. "Any word on what is going on with Simmons?" She asked getting back to the problem she could do something about.

"Yes, his lawyer is here and the DA is on her way over. If she likes what she hears she will make a deal." Gates explained.

"That is still going to take a while." Beckett observed.

"I know." Gates said with a sigh. "Until then I need you and your team to go over every banking record we can get for him and keep trying to figure out what is going on with this hostage situation. We need to find out how they plan to exit the building."

"Yes, sir." Beckett said and she clearly was not thrilled by the idea of throwing herself back at the same old problem that was not directly linked to getting her father, Martha, and Alexis back.

"I know it seems like a long shot." Gates said trying to reassure her. "But these plans had to be thrown together at the last minute so they may not have had time to cover their tracks as well. I have seen your record and you can figure this out."

Beckett just turned and left the room silently, she then made her way over the to the murder board and she turned what Gates had said over in her mind, in truth she didn't feel like she could do this. She felt like she was doing the same old thing over and over again. It was then that a crazy thought struck her and she called Ryan and Esposito over to her.

"What is it?" Esposito asked.

"What if we have been going about this the wrong way?" Beckett answered his question with one of her own.

"What do you mean?" Ryan asked.

"We have been assuming that have some sort of complex plan to exit the bank." Beckett explained.

"Yeah, well so far they have had good plans." Ryan pointed out.

"But they had to come up with this one on the fly, so what if they are doing something we have seen them do before?" Beckett asked.

"Makes sense, I guess." Esposito agreed.

"They had to have backpacks or something with them to carry the C4 and we only know what one of them looks like." Beckett began to explain. "If any of the C4 goes off that bank is going to be full of lots of firefighters, EMTs, members of the bomb squad, SWAT, and the feds all running around in uniforms, it would be easy for half a dozen guys to get lost in the shuffle if they had their own uniforms and fake Ids.

"That would mean that at least some of the hostages are going to die." Ryan observed gravely.

"Yes, so we have to get in touch with whoever is on the ground there and warn them." Beckett commanded urgently then she added a little more hopefully. "Is Jacobs saying anything?"

"No." Esposito replied with a shake of his head. "He has his union rep in there with him and this is going to be a hard charge to prove."

"Ryan I want you going over his stuff, I trust you to find the proof that he put this virus in the computer." Beckett commanded.

"Okay." Was Ryan's only reply and then he turned to go about his work.

"Espo, I want you to go over everything we know about Jacobs, money, family, old school friends everything." Beckett instructed.

"Right." Esposito replied.

"I will handle talking to Jacobs." Beckett heard a voice behind her say and she turned around, shocked. She had not heard her captain walk up behind her. "I am used to dealing with dirty cops and their union reps." She explained and then added. "You, Mr. Castle, and Mr. Sorrenson work the list he is putting together of people who worked for the company that built the panic room at the safe house."

"Yes, sir." Beckett replied as her boss turned and headed back into her office. It was then that she spotted Castle coming towards her in his wheelchair with a grave look in his eyes.

"I got a text, a time and a place. I have to leave now." Was all Castle said in an even tone.

"It could be a trap." Beckett pointed out desperately.

"I know, that is why I need you here." Castle said firmly and Beckett nodded that she understood. Someone had to work with Will and she was the only one who could be trusted.

"Just be careful." Beckett instructed.

"I will try." Castle replied and Beckett wasn't sure she was happy with this reply but before she could say anything he turned and headed for the elevator. Beckett watched him leave, because for all she knew this could be the last time she would ever see him alive.

**Sorry this chapter took so long but I got on a roll with my novel and I have been spending my free time writing that.**

**Thanks again to everyone for reading and reviewing.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	41. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40**

Richard Castle entered the small playground and park with some trepidation,when he had been given the address in a text message he had been shocked to find that he knew it all too well. He was a little early, the people who worked for the car service he used were used to dealing with people in his condition and things had gone faster then he had thought they would. This gave him time to look around and he saw mothers and nannies rushing after children in the mid morning sun. Some of them were pushing the children on swings, the same swings he had once pushed his own daughter on back in what felt like another life. This was clearly another attempt to manipulate him, but it would not work. All that mattered was getting his little girl back, nothing else would be allowed to get in the way.

"I know this place is special to you, that is why I choose it." A gruff male voice said behind him and Castle was shocked to find that the older man had once again crept up on him.

"Stop trying to manipulate me." Castle barked out harshly as he turned his chair to face the man. "They have my daughter, so I don't care about anything else all I want to do is get her back."

"I understand." The man nodded. "Standing by while family is in danger is not something we are good at."

"Stop that!" Castle demanded through gritted teeth. "I know when I did my research on the CIA that they drew up a profile on me and that profile would have concluded that the fact that I never had a father was something that could be exploited. Well things have gone too far, I am grown man and I will not be exploited,. Either you give me a real truthful reason to trust you, or we are done and I make a deal with Bracken." Castle's tone was firm and commanding and the coldness in his eyes left no room for argument.

The man seemed to consider this for a moment and then he let out a sad sigh. Whe he spoke it was with a voice that was full of conflicting emotions. "Do you remember when you were ten and at the library looking for a good book" The man asked and suddenly realized that he knew exactly what the man was talking about, he had an idea where this was headed but he was too shocked to do anything other then nod that he remembered. "You had gotten to the age where you were too old for children's books and I guess you were a little more grown up then your friends because The Hardy Boys didn't seem to appeal to you and you were looking for something in the adult fiction section. A man came up and handed you a copy of..."

The man didn't get to finish because Castle finished the story. "Casino Royal." Castle let out with a shocked breath. His eyes started to fill with tears, the fact was most of the time he followed his heart and today he had been fighting that instinct but now it was taking over because he knew there was only one way this man could know the story. "How do you know about that?' He demanded. "I have never told anyone, not even my mother that story. She thinks I picked the book for myself and she didn't want to check it out for me until I threw a fit."

"I know, because I was that man." The man said with a sad smile. Castle was too shocked too say a word so he continued. "It was too dangerous for me to get close to you and that hurt so much, but I had to check in on you from time to time."

Castle looked up at the man and for the first time his eyes were full of something other then anger or fear. "That book is why I became a writer."

"I know." The older man said simply. "Wherever I was in the world I always got your latest book and always read all of your interviews. When you said that book was the reason you became a writer for the first time in my life I felt like maybe I had some impact in your life. Then when you needed to do research at the CIA I pulled some strings to get you in. Those are the only two times in my life I really felt like a father and I would have given anything to have more like them but those were not the cards we were dealt." A sadness seem to come over hunt as he finished this last part.

Castle then spoke his voice barely above a whisper. "If staying away and leaving her with her mother would have kept Alexis safe from all of this, I would have done the same thing. I understand."

"I thought I was out, the night I met your mother. In the morning I then found out I was in deeper then ever and had to run." Hunt explained.

Castle nodded that he understood. "Then after I was shot you had to come back." Castle reasoned, he then followed this up with a question. "Why here?"

"We needed to meet in a public place and it was important to me that you believed me. No one else at the CIA knows how important this place is to you." Hunt explained.

"Okay." Castle nodded taking it all in and as he watched a little red headed girl who could not have been older then five on the swings his mind was drawn back to the real reason he was here and his nerves returned to steel.

"You can't risk Bracken becoming President, then why didn't you take him out your self?" Castle asked coldly. "If you had, none of this would have happened."

"If the CIA were to take out a member of our own government there would be no turning back." Hunt explained firmly. "Believe me some people at the agency want to do just that but I got this case and I can't let that happen. It would be crossing a line."

"The six dead gang banger argue against you having any kind of line." Castle pointed out bitterly.

"You are a writer. Just imagine for one moment what would happen if the CIA started killing members of the government it is supposed to answer to. Yes I have never felt bad about using extreme measures to protect my country or family but if I went that far at some point there wouldn't be anything left of my country." Hunt explained and his voice was once again coated with raw emotion. "I will help, but in the eye of the public Bracken has to be brought down within the law."

"How do we do that, he has Alexis and mother." Castle demanded and there was panic in his voice. "If he offers a deal, then I am going to take it.

"You do that son and you will all end up dead." Hunt replied harshly. "Remember the press conference and remember what happened to Montgomery."

"In both cases there was a threat and it was because I did something stupid." Castle insisted. "If I had stayed out of the case in the first place nothing would have happened."

Hunt shook his head. "Bracken is child, he doesn't really understand how the world works." A sad smile crossed his lips. "Maybe if you were dealing with a normal every day mobster or gang member they would leave you alone but Bracken wants total security and he doesn't understand that there is no such thing. Even before you went digging he thought Beckett knew something and he was planning to have her dealt with at some point in the future."

"So, there is no way to be safe from him." Castle observed looking down at the ground.

"Bracken believes he can't be touched so he is using the only weapon he knows, blunt force." Hunt explained in a reassuring voice. "He is leaving himself more and more exposed. One thing you can't do is expose him in front of the world like you promised, that was a good bluff but now that he has Alexis and Martha that is not an option."

"Then what do I do?!" Castle demanded desperately. "He is holding all of the cards and trap or not when a deal is offered I have to take it."

"Your girlfriend is the key." Hunt explained calmly. "Bracken and his people are convinced her mother left some proof with her, she had solid proof of some kind. That is why she was killed."

"Well they are wrong." Castle fired back. "If there was proof Beckett would have found it by now."

"All I know is that Bracken is desperate to get something that was left "with family", talk to your girlfriend and see if it rings any bells." Hunt instructed.

"That's it's?" Castle replied with disbelief. "My daughter has been taken and you expect me to just keep doing what I am doing. Why should I trust you, You let he get taken in the first place."

"I admit, I made a mistake." Hunt said sadly. "I was watching you because you were in danger when I should have been watching Martha and Alexis because they were part of the long game."

"Well you screwed that up too, the sniper still got off two shots and if Beckett didn't have her vest on then she would be dead." Castle barked back harshly.

"Why do you think it was a chest shot in the center of her vest instead of a head shot." Hunt shot back.

"That was you?" Castle asked shocked. "You shot Beckett and shot at me."

"Marks had three other guy with him and they were good, so it was the only way I could get you out of the line of fire." Hunt explained. "Still I did set up a camera just outside of their room and I got their pictures for you." Hunt said as he handed a still very shocked Castle a small USB flash drive. "Make sure they don't get out of that bank and we will come out on top of this." Hunt then instructed.

"Wait." Castle said coldly and this got Hunts attention and Castle looked up at him with the eyes or a hunter stalking it's prey. "If we follow your plan and Alexis is hurt in any way, father or no father I will come after you. I don't know how but I will make you pay, so you had better be sure this plan will work."

"I would expect nothing less." Was all Hunt said and then he turned and vanished into the crowd making it's way down the sidewalk leaving Castle to ponder everything he had just heard. The life of his little girl would depend on what he did in the next few hours and he had to decide if he could trust a man he hardly knew, his father.

**Well hopefully you liked this chapter. If you think I got something wrong please let me know in the reviews so I can correct it.**

**As always you guys are the best. Thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	42. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41**

Tracking down and checking up on all the employees of "Fortress Security Solutions" who may have known how to drill past the doors to panic rooms that were installed three years before was not a good distraction for Kate Beckett. It was a lot of busy work involving long and fruitless web searches and phone calls to out of use or transferred numbers. While such work made up the majority of the police detectives day to day, and whenever Castle complained she was quick to remind him that he was the one who said he needed to "research" so the story was "real", today it was not what she needed. The problem was because it was routine she could do the job in her sleep and it gave her mind too much time to wonder. She had so many worries and so many conflicting questions and when that was added to a sleepless night and a coffee rush, it was not good. Finally after more then an hour at it she broke down and excused herself to go to the ladies' room. She could have held it a little longer but one thing she had learned on her first week as a uniform was that bathroom stalls were a good place to collect yourself so you could get back to work. It was a lesson all cops learned at some point, it didn't matter how strong they were on the outside or what their gender was, sometimes a cop just needed a minute to themselves. Kate Beckett needed a minute.

Kate Beckett looked under each of the stalls to ensure that she was alone and once she knew the coast was clear she sat down on the toilet in the second stall and started to cry. She only allowed herself to do this for a minute before she turned her tears into a fist that was punching the wall of the stall as hard as she could. It hurt like hell but she didn't care. Another thing she had been quick to learn when she joined the force that that depression left you inactive, rage kept you going. Turn your sadness into anger and you could do something productive and maybe get the bastards who had done the horrible thing that you couldn't bear to think about. She allowed herself another minute to do this then she forced her feelings down and back behind her wall. She then began to wash her hands in the sink, taking an extra moment or two in order to just stare at the metal basin as her hands hovered over it. She then looked up into the mirror with the intention of adjusting her makeup so no one could tell she had been crying. Instead what she saw reflected in it made her let out a startled gasp.

"Lanie, I didn't hear you come in." Kate explained as she turned to face her best friend, regaining her composure, then she once she was facing her she added a question. "What are you doing here?"

"What am I doing here?!" The African American woman gasped back with disbelief all over her face. "Right now I am holding myself back from smacking you!"

This brought a sad half smile to Kate's face for a moment as she looked down at the floor and a feeling of shame washed over her for a second. In retrospect it was a stupid question. Just two days ago she had told her best friend she was going into witness protection and then this morning she came back into town without so much as a phone call and then got shot on national television. Where else would Lanie be at the moment. "Sorry." was all she could mutter in response.

"That is okay." Lanie replied, relenting for the moment and then she took Kate in a comforting hug. Kate hated to admit it but sometimes her best friend knew her better then she knew herself. Until that moment she had not known just how much she needed direct physical contact with another human being, and she was grateful for it. "Javi told me everything." Lanie explained a moment later as she released Kate. "How are you doing?"

Kate knew it was useless to lie, Lanie knew her too well. So she decided to go with the truth and maybe her friend could help. "Oh Lanie, I'm a mess." She confessed. Her friend nodded that she understood so Kate continued. "All I can think about is the fact that I could lose my dad and that some time soon a call is going to come and if I do the wrong thing when it comes I will never see my dad again."

"If the worst does happen I will be her for you." Was all Lanie said in reply and it was nice to hear something other then a cliché for once. "If it does go badly you know he will not want you blaming yourself, right?" Her friend then asked.

"I know, but I can't promise that I will not." Kate said with a sniff.

"That goes without saying, I guess." Lanie said sadly and then added more firmly. "Just promise me that you will come to me if you start thinking of doing anything drastic."

"Lanie, I'm not..." Kate began to object but Lanie wouldn't let her finish.

"No, I mean it. Before you turn to the bottle or something worse come to me." Laine commanded.

"I'll try." This was the only promise she could make at the moment. She then changed the subject slightly. "Then there is Castle." There was a hint of guilt in her voice as the words passed her lips. "I know I should be there for him and that he could lose his daughter, but all I can think about is my dad. It's all I can focus on and I know it is selfish but it's the only thing I can think of right now."

"And how does this make you different then the rest of the human race?" Laine asked pointedly.

"I guess this is how everyone in this situation must feel, but I need to keep my head clear and even my dad would tell me Alexis should be the one I am focusing on." Kate sighed as she ran her right hand through her hair.

"I know it feels that way but it's not possible and I know Castle understands that." Lanie said trying to reassure her friend. "You can't help the fact that you care about your father and no one expects you to. Just do your best to get your father back and Martha and Alexis will be fine."

"I hope you are right." Kate replied and it was clear she wasn't so sure herself.

"Are you having a hard time dealing with the fact that it is Bracken who is behind this?" Lanie asked a second later, she knew what her friend needed and that was to vent out everything so she could go back out and work on the case with a clear head. Kate Beckett wasn't good at leaning on others for support but Lanie was going to make her do it come hell or high water. "I mean you voted for the guy who murdered your mother, that can't be easy for you."

"Yeah." Kate admitted and her voice was just above a whisper. "I keep telling myself that I didn't betray her because I didn't know but I keep thinking about the fact that I helped him evade justice and every time I do it makes me want to throw up." Lanie looked at her sadly but didn't say a word, she knew her friend wasn't done yet. "Then I think about how my father must feel. His law firm handles one of Bracken's charities. He has just relapsed, if he feels half as bad as I do right now then how do I keep him from drinking himself to death now?"

Lanie gave this question a moment's thought before she replied. "You can't, you know that." She said firmly as she looked her friend in the eye. "You know the only person who can stop him from drinking is him. The most you can do is give him a reason to stop drinking and remind him that none of this is either of your fault. Your votes didn't put him into office and this is just another way he attacked you. You didn't betray your mother." Kate nodded that she understood but Lanie was not convinced. "I am not leaving this room until I hear you say it isn't your fault. Say it." Lanie instructed harshly.

"It isn't my fault." Kate said out loud a moment later and she felt a little silly but she had to admit it did make her feel a little better.

A few moments later when Kate seemed to have calmed down Lanie asked a question that had been eating at her since she had walked across the bullpen to speak to Javi. "What is Will Sorrenson doing here?"

"I have no idea." Kate admitted. "I mean he has lost his job and he isn't the same person I remember. I have to wonder if I judged him to harshly in the past, did I just not see that he was a decent person?"

"Don't tell me you are getting feelings for him?" Lanie asked in disbelief.

"No, it's nothing like that." Kate replied firmly. "I just can't figure out why he is here."

"Good." Lanie said with a sigh of relief. "Because there were very good reasons you broke up with him and he is a jerk."

"Still he lost a job that meant everything to him and he is here working with me when he knows he is not going to win me back. I would like to know why." Kate insisted.

"People do change over time. I know sometimes you don't think so but it is true." Lanie offered. "As for why he is here now, if it is bugging you that much why not just ask him?"

"That just seems like it would be awkward, I mean I would be calling him a jerk and then asking him why he isn't one now." Kate explained.

"Well he already knows you think he is a jerk and if he has changed at all then he knows it was true in the past. Since he inserted himself into this situation you have a right to know." Lanie stated and Kate had to admit that after having the facts laid out for her like this it did make a certain kind of sense. Lanie then decided to try and lighten the mood just a bit. "I will say this, I am proud of you."

"What for?" Kate asked and she was clearly puzzled.

"What do you mean what for?!" Lanie gasped out as if it was the dumbest question she had ever heard in her life. "You finally stopped running. Now personally I wouldn't have chosen to confess my love in front of the entire country, but you finally admitted it to yourself and Castle. Good for you!" Lanie beamed at her friend.

"Oh, that." Kate mumbled as she looked down at her feet.

"What's wrong?" Lanie asked clearly concerned.

"It's just I am worried things are going too fast." Kate replied with a pained huff.

"You two have been dancing around each other for three years." Lanie pointed out.

"I know that." Kate agreed with a frustrated sigh. "But we have only been a couple for a few days and we have a lot of things to work and he is jumping at every loud noise and I am having nightmares. Then you add the stress of this whole situation and the fact that I really want some alone time but he wants to spend every second with me and I am just afraid we will crash and burn like all of my other relationships."

"And you don't think you could handle that." Lanie observed and it wasn't a question.

"No, I have to admit I don't think I could." Kate stated sadly.

Lanie gave the matter a moment's thought and then she spoke kindly. "Well all I can say is don't run and hide. You don't have to get married or even live together yet and if you need some time alone at your own place when all this is over then take it. I am sure Castle will understand as long as you talk to him. That has always been the problem with the two of you, you don't talk. Explain to him why you need time and that you are not running before you take the time and I am sure it will turn out alright."

"I'll give it a try. Assuming things turn out alright today." Kate agreed.

"Good." Lanie said with a smile and then added on a more serious note. "If they don't turn out alright you will both need each other. So you can't run then either. I know that will be hard but you have to stick together no matter what if you are going to make it."

"I am not going to let this end badly." Kate said firmly.

"That's the Kate Beckett I know!" Lanie said cheerfully and then added. "Now I have to get back to work. Bodies didn't stop dropping just because all of this happened. Just please remember that I am only a phone call away, call me if you need to talk."

"Thanks, you are the best friend I ever had." Kate said gratefully.

"Any time." Lanie said and then she turned and left the ladies' room leaving Kate behind to fix herself up before she returned to work.

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Captain Victoria Gates had done this hundreds of times before to hundreds of cops, still she didn't like it. Not the part where she took down bad cops who were a disgrace to the force, that part was a job she was proud to do. No, what she hated was that she had to do it at all. She hated that there was scum like the man who was currently sitting across from her that needed to be taken down in the first place. He was a decorated officer with almost eleven years on the job and yet he had betrayed both the city of New York and his fellow officers, that was as low as you could go in Gates book and she didn't feel sorry for him one bit. Yet she knew that most cops would view him as just another victim of heartless, cop hating, "Iron Gates". She had put up with the names and the personally attacks ever since she had first decided someone had to take down dirty cops and she was the right person for the job. She had developed a thick skin so it wouldn't hurt her. Still she didn't like it when scum like the balding middle aged man who sat across from her were treated like victims. Men like Bryan Jacobs deserved to be taken down and that was just what Victoria Gates intended to do.

"For the record you are declining legal counsel and union representation, Mr. Jacobs." Gates spoke into the microphone that sat on the desk between them, recording every word that was said by either of them.

"I have nothing to hide." Jacobs said with a shrug, if he was worried he was hiding it well.

"Does that mean you decline both legal counsel and union representation?" Gates asked forcefully, she had too many years on the the force to let a detail like that slide.

"I haven't been charged with anything so, yes I decline." Jacobs said calmly.

"You are correct, you are not being charged at this time." Gates said equally calmly and she let the last part hang in the air before she continued opening up a folder she had brought into the room with her and began looking at the papers inside. "Still after what happened this morning you have to understand that there are questions that need answering. After all the virus did not destroy the banking records until you logged onto the system."

"Look I know you want another head to go in your trophy case." Gates didn't react the the comment, she had heard far worse in her time and it didn't bother her in the least, she just let him continue. "But I ain't dirty." Didn't he know they all said that? Gates chuckled to herself mentally but her face still didn't betray a thing. "If I had to guess I would say that the virus had been sitting there for a while and it was programed to go to work the moment someone started downloading the files."

"Or you could have put it there. You understand why we have to check." Gates responded, still not letting him know just how much she knew.

"Yeah, given your history I understand why you would jump at the chance but I didn't do anything." Jacobs agreed and he still didn't sound worried. "Once you take a look at my laptop you will see I am telling the truth."

"We tried but it erased itself." Gates reported.

"Son of a bitch!" Jacobs spat out and Gates had to admit he was a very good actor. If Gates were anyone else she would believe him, but she wasn't anyone else and she saw through the act and continued to give him rope to hang himself with. "That Virus must have gotten onto my computer!"

"It didn't get onto Anderson's computer. He was working with you and his computer was fine." Gates pointed out.

"Computer viruses can be tricky. If one of us did plant it I would bet on Anderson, since his computer was clean." Trying to deflect guilt onto another officer, that was the tactic Gates hated the most. It was people like Jacobs, not her who had no respect for the uniform. Still it did tell her that he was worried, even if he wasn't showing it.

"Jacobs didn't just deposit eight thousand dollars into a bank account." Gates said as she slid a piece of paper across the table for Jacobs to look at.

"That was an investment that turned good, not a pay off. You can check it out, it's clean." Jacobs insisted.

"Oh we did." Gates said, her voice raising just a little. "It seems that account is not at the same bank that you and your wife have your joint accounts and she didn't know anything about it when we asked her."

"Look, this is personal." Jacobs said with a heavy sigh and there was fake honesty all over his face, Gates had been around long enough to know the difference between fake honesty and the real kind. "Things haven't been going well between my Clair and I the past few months and I don't think it is going to work out so I didn't want her to know about all of my money. I didn't want to end up completely broke if things continued to go south."

"That doesn't explain why a person of interest in the attacks of the last few days is on the board of the directors of the company you invested in." Gates said as she leaned forward in her chair.

"Millions of people invest, it doesn't prove anything. You miss hunting down cops so you are twisting the facts to make me guilty. The fact is you will find no proof of anything because I haven't done anything." Jacobs shot back and for the first time he raised his voice.

"Okay." Gates said calmly leaning back in her chair. "Still you should know that until this investigation clears you, you are suspended and I will be recommending that it be without pay. Also since there may be terrorist involvement I had to alert Home land security and they are freezing your accounts until we have answers."

"Do you have any idea what the union will do to you when they get wind of this." Jacobs barked at her and now he was angry and Gates just let him fume. "I have a wife and two kids that depend on me, they need money to live and you are trying to force me to confess to something I didn't do. You have no proof!" Jacobs stood up and banged his fist on the table as his face turned red.

Gates didn't respond to this directly, instead she nodded in the direction of the camera that was recording everything. That was the signal and a moment later detective Kevin Ryan entered the room. "We do have something." The Irish detective said and unlike Gates there was anger in his eyes. "You were smart the moment I found a program on your computer labeled _Protection _Your hard drive did start getting bricked but you know what, you forgot the little things." Jacobs looked unsure of himself for a second but just shot a death glare in Ryan's direction but Ryan continued. "You ever heard of FRAPS?"

"FRAPS?" Jacobs repeated, he was unsure where Ryan was going with this but being it was something he hadn't thought of he seemed a little worried.

"Well you see it is a program that records everything that is on a computer screen." Ryan said and he was sounding a little cocky. "You can download it easily and since it doesn't reincode the recordings from live data the files take up a lot of space but it also means they can be recorded onto anything and even if the computer crashes there is a good chance that the files will still work. You know if you happen to have them recording onto a USB drive that is plugged into a crashing computer then those files will be okay and you can see what was on the computer before it crashed. I downloaded FRAPs before I went looking on your laptop and one of the things that was recorded onto the thumb drive was the date the virus was created, Yesterday. It was on there before you went to the bank's backup servers."

Jacobs face turned white as a sheet and he sank silently into his chair. Gates then closed in for the kill. "Still have nothing to say?" She asked pointedly. Maybe all of this would not stand up in court but she knew when someone felt cornered and more often then not that meant a victory for her. She would give him a few moments to think about his bleak future before she pressed again but she was sure that she had once again gotten her man.

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It took Kate Beckett a few minutes of working across the desk from Will Sorrenson before it all became too much and she had to ask the question that had been eating away at her since he had shown up at the precinct. "Will, why are you here?" She asked with sigh.

"What do you mean?" Sorrenson asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Just what I asked, I keep going over it in my mind and it makes no sense." Beckett said not breaking eye contact with the former FBI special agent.

"Do we have to do this now?" Sorrenson asked and he sounded very annoyed.

"My father's life is on the line and I am working with you, so yes I have a right to know why you are here." Beckett said firmly and she didn't leave any room for him to wiggle out of it. "I mean you and I didn't part on good terms and you have to know we are not getting back together so you can't be doing it for me. You don't like Castle so you are not doing it for him. You lost your job so there isn't a promotion in it for you any more, and you are not a nice enough guy to be doing this just to help out. At first I thought there was something between you and Kelly but then why did you ask her to get involved in the first place, so what is it." As she finished Beckett through her hands in the air and leaned back in her chair.

"Well first of all let me just say there will never be anything between me and Kelly." Sorrenson replied and a strange look passed over his face. "She is my cousin and I helped her get her job."

"Okay, but why are you sticking around now that you know she is safe?" Beckett asked trying to push forward, suddenly the conversation had gotten a lot more awkward then even she had thought it would be.

"You are right I am a jerk." Sorrenson admitted quietly. "Then I met someone and she told me that either I change or it was over, and I couldn't let it be over so I have been working on myself."

"Okay." Beckett said not sure she believed the sob story but it was clearly the only one she was getting so she pressed on. "Why come here in the first place and why stick around?"

"You are right at first I did just come here for a promotion, I was using you." Sorrenson said and he at least sounded honest.

"So what happened to all that work you put into changing?" Beckett asked rather harshly.

"I didn't say I was done with it, still I think I am a better person then I was in the past." Sorrenson said.

"Okay but then why stick around and what was so special about this woman that you put so much work into changing yourself?" Beckett asked and she was still puzzled, she found it hard to believe people could change on the best of days and today was not the best of days.

"It's the same answer to both questions." Sorrenson answered gently. "We are having a baby and getting married and I wanted to be a better person for both of them. I also keep thinking about how I would feel if it was my kid in the place of Alexis Castle. I have never even seen the baby and already I love it so much, I can't imagine what Castle is going through and I know there are not many people he can trust so I can't bring myself to walk away from this. Can you understand?"

Beckett gave herself a moment to think about this and when she answered she surprised herself. "Yes, I think I can. Truce?"

"Truce." Sorrenson agreed and then they both returned to work.

A moment latter Beckett's cellphone started to ring. When she glanced at the phone and saw on the caller ID that it was a blocked number a feeling of dread swept over her, she had a very good idea what was coming. Still it couldn't be avoided so she took a breath to calm herself and she answered the phone.

Beckett was greeted by a cold male voice. "Detective Beckett, if you ever want to see your father or Mr. Castle's family alive again you will do exactly what I say. It was the moment Beckett had feared would come, the moment when she was cornered.

**I hope you liked this chapter. I find Lanie and Gates hard to wright so I am not sure about this chapter at all. If you think I got them out of character please let me know so I can fix it.**

**Thanks again for reading and reviewing and see you next chapter.**

**Thanks once again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	43. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42**

Alexis Castle awoke groggy finding herself surrounded by total darkness and a revolting smell that she could not recognize. She struggled to both wake up and remember how she had gotten where she was, she felt like she had taken a million bynadryl and her body wanted nothing more then to go back to sleep. Against this was set the panic rising from the pit of her stomach, she knew this wasn't right and she was in danger. She forced herself to wake up and slowly began to recall how and why she had come to be where she was at that moment.

The last thing she remembered was a loud bang followed by the heavy door to the panic room being forced open. Several heavily armed men had then burst in and were on top of her, her grandmother, and Mr. Beckett before they could do anything. She remembered fighting and screaming. At that moment there had not been any sort of thoughts in her head, only pure terror and a need to get away. She had struggled like she never had before in her life, but the large male arms that had grabbed hold of her by the waist wouldn't budge. It was then that she had felt a sharp pain in the back of her neck and then she didn't remember anything else until she woke up in whatever this place was. She guessed the pain must have been a needle and she had been drugged, that was the only way to explain what had happened.

After a few moments of panic where among other things Alexis worried about what would happen to her father if these people killed her and then she remembered that she was bait for a trap to kill him, she regained control of herself. Clearing her head she slowly began to put things together. She had no idea how she would do it but she had to get out of here, she knew her father would come but she refused to be the reason he walked into a trap and died. She was going to get out of here and she wasn't about to lose her father while doing it!

With that thought foremost on her mind she decided that the first thing she needed to do was figure out exactly where she was. She tried reaching out to find something, anything that could help but she found that the darkness was so complete she could not even see her own hand. Knowing that her sense of sight was useless she focused her attention on her other senses. The awful smell was almost as bad as garbage but different somehow, she didn't know what it was so that would be of no help at the moment. She slowly stood up and realized that the floor was metal, this could be a help. She decided to take a walk and see what else she could learn about her surroundings. Holding out her hands so she wouldn't bump into anything she made her way slowly to her left. She had not gone more then half a dozen paces when her hands ran into a wall, it was metal as well. She then went off to the right in as close to a straight line as she could without her sight and found that about the same number of paces from where she started there was another wall. She then turned around and went backwards and found about a dozen paces back yet another wall, and the same held true in front of where she had woken up. She then became aware that she was getting a little motion sick. That was when all the pieces fell into place for her. The size, shape, and material that made up her surroundings could only mean one thing, she was in a shipping container that was on the back of a truck. She still hadn't found anything that explained the smell but she would take this as a victory for now.

So she was being transported somewhere covertly. Her first instinct was to reach for her cellphone but of course she didn't find it in her pocket, she had lost it in the kitchen of the safe house at some point. After that she remembered someone, she assumed her grandmother, had led her to the upstairs panic room.

"Grams, where was she?! Was she here?" These panicked thoughts ran through Alexis' head before she calmed herself. A few years ago she had looked up what the experts advised people to do when kidnapped while surfing the internet. Her father had been very upset that she had done this, he had always maintained that as long as he kept her out of the public eye that would be enough and she should worry about this sort of thing. Still she had always considered herself the more realistic of the two of them. She didn't consider herself spoiled by any means, not that her father hadn't done his best to spoil her growing up. In fact before she had resigned herself to having the relationship she had with her mother, she had been jealous of the kids at her school who's mothers picked them up every day. Still she knew that given the amount of money her dad had there was always a chance someone would risk every thing just to get a small piece of what he had, so she had looked it up. Now she was glad that she had because it was helping her. She remembered that in this situation she was unlikely to be killed, at least not right away because these people wanted something from her dad and without her they had nothing to offer him.

She remember the next step, remain calm, find out as much about where you were as you could, and if there are other people with you find out what shape they are in. Alexis took a deep calming breath and then began to call out into the darkness.

"Grams, Are you here?! Grams are you okay?" She yelled out as loud as she could and just as she did the truck seemed to go over a bump in the road and she nearly fell face first onto the hard metal floor. Instinctively she reached out with both hands and caught herself just before she impacted with the floor. She then pushed herself up on shaky legs, her motion sickness was getting worse but that was not important at the moment. The only thing that mattered was finding out what happened to her Grams, so she continued to call out.

Finally after a few minutes of calling out a groggy voice answered her cries. "Alexis, I am here. Where are you?"

"Grams, thank god!" Alexis called out gratefully and she made her way in the direction of the voice. She still couldn't see a thing but when she bumped into someone and that person grabbed her into a hug and she felt tears on her hair, she knew she had found her Grams.

"Alexis, I thought I was going to lose you." Martha sob out into her granddaughter's hair. She could not see anything either so she was so grateful for the fact that she could take the young girl into her arms.

"I'm okay." Alexis reassured her grandmother. "Are you okay?" Alexis asked concerned not letting go of the older woman.

"I will live." Martha replied.

It was then, before Alexis could say anything else that they both heard a loud moan coming somewhere off to the left. "What smells like chicken shit?" They heard the voice ask no one in particular, and there was no mistaking the fact that the voice belonged to Jim Beckett.

"Mr. Beckett, we are over here!" Alexis called out, she wasn't about to waste any time bringing them together. She knew that they needed a plan and fast. "Are you alright?"

"I've had worse headaches." She heard the older man reply as she also heard the unmistakable sounds of his feet walking across the metal floor. Alexis pushed herself out of her grandmother's grasp just in time to be bumped into by Jim Beckett. "Sorry." The older man muttered and then added. "Are you two okay?"

"We are both fine." Martha replied.

Alexis decided that despite her age since she was the only one who knew what to do in this situation she had to take charge. "Mr. Beckett you said this place smelled like chicken mess, did you mean it?" Alexis asked.

"Yeah, I have been to chicken farms and believe me, this is the smell." Jim replied.

"Okay." Alexis said and she gave the matter a moment's thought before she continued. She then proceeded to explain about what she had read online and the fact that they needed to stick together, to her surprise the two adults agreed without an argument.

"Well it sounds to me like we are in a shipping crate hidden behind some chicken containers." Martha, she wanted to add something productive to the conversation even if it was the obvious.

"Well then it is unlikely we will be found by the police since chickens are Delaware's number one export." Alexis observed gravely and even in the pitch black she could tell that the two other people in the room were giving her questioning looks. "It was one of the few things I could look up on that dial up connection." She explained and then added back on topic. "The point is chicken trucks are so common that no one will think twice about this one."

"That's true." Jim agreed with a sigh.

"And we have no idea where they are taking us." Martha observed, gravely.

"I think we have some idea." Jim said sadly. "They want to use us as a trap to murder your son and Kate. They will not walk into the trap if they don't see us so they have to be taking us to New York."

"That makes sense, the road was really bumpy when I first woke up but now it feels smooth, we must have moved off of back roads and on to the highway." Alexis said thoughtfully.

"Then they are going to kill Kate and then us." Jim stated and he was so depressed and that moment he wasn't even thinking about panicking the two woman who were trapped with him. All he could think about was the fact that the last thing he was going to see before he died was his little girl dying.

"That means we have to come up with a plan and get out of here." Alexis said forcefully, she knew she couldn't let either of the other two give up.

"But how?" Jim Beckett asked dejectedly.

"This truck has to stop to get gas." Alexis said after giving the matter a few moment's thought. "That will have to be a public place with security cameras, so that will be our best chance." Alexis said calmly.

"You are right!" Jim replied with a shout and there was something close to hope in his voice. "Also these trucks normally only have one or two guys in them, no more. So there is a chance we have a lot fewer people to deal with."

"Good point, and only one of us has to get free." Alexis stated firmly. "If any one of us gets away we don't turn back, we get help for others.' Alexis knew she would have an argument on this point so then she added. "They need us alive for now, so the others will be safe and the best chance we all have is if we have help. Kate and my Dad's lives depend on that."

The two older people reluctantly agreed with her. Jim then added a thought of his own. "We still have to get them to open the door when they stop."

"Well they need us alive so they must have some way to keep an eye on us so there must be some way to communicate with them once we stop, we just have to come up with a plan before then." Alexis said as she tried to sound more sure of herself then she really was.

"If that is the case, then I have an idea." Martha said and her voice sounded almost cheerful and as Martha explained her idea Alexis felt a little better. They were still in grave danger but they could do something about it and what was more for the first time in years she felt like she had the power to help keep her dad safe.

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Richard Castle was sitting in the back of his town care on his way back to the precinct when his phone rang. When he looked at the caller ID he saw that it was coming from a number he knew all too well. He mentally kicked himself for not calling this person sooner but he knew she was busy and he had hoped that he would get Alexis back before she knew anything about it.

It was with a heavy sigh that he resigned himself to facing the music and picked up his phone. He didn't even get one word out before the caller was biting his head off. "Richard what is this I hear about our daughter being kidnapped?!" Meredith, his ex wife and Alexis' mother demanded. "Why didn't you call me?! I knew no good could come of you playing around with that cop." The voice on the other end broke down into sobs.

"I am sorry, I am going to get her back. That is what I am working on right now." Castle replied weakly.

"You know you can't promise me that!" Meredith shouted back. "I am leaving the shoot, my producer offered me the use of his private jet, so I will be there is a few hours."

"You don't have to do that." Castle said, he wasn't used to his ex wife caring about their daughter at all.

"Like hell I don't! I may be the world's worst mother but I am coming!" Meredith barked out and then the phone went dead. Things just kept going from bad to worse for Richard Castle today.

**As you may be able to tell I didn't like the fact that Meredith didn't even call when Alexis was kidnapped on the show. Then she didn't seem at all worried about her daughter the next time we saw her. Now I know Meredith is a flake and I don't want to change that but it seems to me that if she were as big of a flake as they showed on the program then she wouldn't have bothered keeping in touch with Alexis in the first place. Also it made Alexis look a little to weak for my taste. It seems to me that she wouldn't have agreed to go on a trip with a woman who couldn't even be bothered to ask her ex husband to record her daughter graduation and then compounded the problem by not caring when she was kidnapped and as hunt said the kidnapping made headlines all over the world so that even a spy in hiding heard about it so she had to know. I am pretty sure after that Satan would be ice skating to work before Alexis would want to go on a trip with Meredith, so I changed that. I hope you don't think I went too out of character. I know the is AU and I have added my own background to some of the characters that have not been completely fleshed out on the show but my goal is to still keep things in character.**

**Thank you all for reading and reviewing, ever review helps a bunch.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for sticking with me and helping with this chapter. Thanks to everyone who put up with my long delays.**


	44. Sorry for the delay, I've had Bronchitis

Hey I just wanted to drop a line and let you all know that I have not given up on this story or forgotten about you guys. I know this story is taking a long time to finish but we are nearly done.

The delay this time was cause by a really bad case of Bronchitis that made it's way through my family over the past three weeks. At times I was having trouble sitting up and everyone in my family got it, so as you can imagine things have been a little out of control here and now that I am feeling better I have some house work I need to catch up on and there are a few things I need to work on when it comes to trying to get a job, I need to catch up on those two.

Still finishing this story is a priority for me and I don't want to rush the confusion. You have all been so nice when it comes to putting up with my delays and I want to make the ending worth the wait.

I should have the next chapter up on Monday if all goes well.

I am feeling completely fine now I just have a few things to do and then I can get back to writing.

Thank you all again for your kind support and putting up with my delays, as always you guys are the best.


	45. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43**

There were a large number of conflicting feelings Kate Beckett had expected to feel when the situation she had spent the past two hours dreading finally came. Much to her surprise the feeling that was currently working it's way through her body and spirit was the one she had not thought for a second she would ever feel. It was a feeling of complete and utter calm and she felt more in control of herself then she had in days. Maybe it was the fact that she had spent so much time thinking about what she would do when the worst happened that now that it had happened she was able to control herself and remember her training. She was in fact about to answer when she noticed a nervous looking Castle rolling his way over to her. She then saw Sorrenson whisper something to Castle quickly and Castle's face went white. Beckett then removed her phone from her ear, placing the phone on her desk she pressed the button for the speakerphone function.

"This is Beckett, who is this?" She asked, not really expecting an answer.

"I know you are trying to trace this call so let me be clear. I am making this call in a cellphone I paid cash for and as soon as I am done the phone will go in the trash and I will be in a crowd of thousands. Trying to keep me talking will not get you anywhere and I will not repeat my instructions." The voice on the other end sounded male and young but it also sounded calm and in command, this clearly disturbed Castle so Beckett knew she had to speak up before he had a chance.

"Why are you calling me?" Beckett asked, remembering her training and stalling anyway. By this point Gates along with Ryan and Esposito had gathered around her desk with Ryan indicating that he had started trying to trace the call. Beckett did not think this would do any good, she was sure the voice was telling the truth but they had to try.

"You know why I am calling and if you ever want to see your father, or Richard Castle's family again you will do exactly what I say." The voice instructed and this time it sounded firmer, this was someone who held all of the cards and he knew it.

"You Bastard!" Castle yelled before Beckett could stop him. "If you harm any of them I will spend every last dime I have, use every contact I have to hunt you all down. There will not be a place on earth you can hide, and when I find you I will make sure you go through so much pain that you will beg to die." Castle's eyes and voice had a coldness to them Beckett had never seen before and it scared her. So far she had managed to keep her emotions in check but this threatened to break her control. She could tell this was no idle threat and that Castle would follow through on it. If he did that she would lose him forever, it was yet one more reason why she had to make sure everyone got out of this situation unharmed.

"Do as I say and it will not come to that." The voice instructed, seemingly unworried by the threat.

Beckett knew she had to take control of the situation, she could tell without looking that Gates was just seconds from taking over the call and she could not have that. She could not lose the last vestige of control she had over the situation, not with her father's life at stake and after she had let Simmons get to her. She needed Castle to let her handle this, but she didn't have time to take him aside and ask him to calm down. Fortunately he still seemed to know her, even if she wasn't sure at that moment how well she knew him. All it took was a single pleading look from her directly into his eyes and he shut his mouth. She could tell he was holding something in that threatened to make him explode from the inside out, but he was holding it in and that gave her a chance.

"How do we know you even have them and that they are still alive and why should we make any kind of deal when we know you intend to kill us all anyway?" Beckett asked and on the outside her voice was just as cold as that as the one on the other end of the conversation but on the inside her blood ran cold as she finally put into words what she knew in her head the situation really was.

"To answer the second question, this is about you and the writer." The voice replied and now it was sounding a bit like a parent scolding a naughty child who did something they knew was wrong. "You brought this on yourselves." Beckett had to literally bite her tongue to keep from rising to this bait. "Your fates are sealed, but as long as you do as instructed so your families are no threat, there is no reason why they should have to pay the price for your misdeeds."

Beckett swallowed hard before the next words left her lips. "You still haven't given me any proof you have them."

"I am getting to that." The voice cut off Castle who was opening his mouth to speak but didn't get the chance. "The location they are being held his weird for cellphone calls, I will let you speak to them." This was followed that silence and then echoes that sounded like they were bouncing off of metal and the faint sound of voices. The sound of one caused Castle to speak up once again.

"Alexis, are you there?!" Castle gasped out in a panic.

"Dad, what is going on?" A confused and worried voice asked.

"The people who took you are letting use talk to you." Castle replied and even as he tried to keep his voice calm a single tear slid down his cheek.

"Is everyone alright?" Becket injected, she wanted to talk to her father at that moment but she had no idea when they would be cut off and she needed to get as much information as they could.

"I am fine and your dad is with me and he is okay." Alexis replied and Beckett saw Castle suck in a breath as he noticed what she did, that one person was not included in that report. "But Grams is having trouble breathing, I think it's her heart." Alexis' voice started to panic now. "Remember that her doctor said she should avoid sedatives, I think whatever they knocked us out with is causing some kind of reaction."

"Is anyone there with you who can help?" Castle asked in a panic.

"I am doing my best to keep her breathing but she doesn't look good." The voice of Jim Beckett reported, sounding more calm then Alexis had.

"Dad?!" Beckett gasped out and she felt her heart drop into her stomach.

"Hey Katie, I am fine and I think we are in a chi" Then Jim Beckett's voice was cut off and second later was replaced with the cold male voice once again.

"I think that is enough proof for you to know we are not lying." The voice said. "Are you ready to receive your instructions."

"You do know that if anything happens to my mother, we don't have a deal." Castle said as his mouth went dry.

"Don't worry, we will not let anything happen to your mother." The voice reassured the writer.

"Also I can not stop this investigation, so at this point getting rid of me will not solve your problems." Beckett added, grasping at straws for anything to give her some sort of control.

"The official investigation is already dead." The voice said smugly. "All we require from you is that you bring everything you have from your personal investigation, along with what your mother left you to a place of our choosing along with the writer and your friend who has made so much trouble."

"You can have me but leave Castle out of this, I promise he will not make trouble!" Becket objected sharply.

"Sorry, your word is not good enough. The writer is part of the deal or everyone dies. If you care about any of these people you will follow the instructions that we will text you later. This is your only chance to save your families, Don't screw with us." The voice instructed firmly and then the line went dead.

"Tell me you got a location!" Beckett barked turning to Ryan.

"Sorry, all I got was that the call came from DC, so it could be anyone there." Ryan replied with a guilty look in his eyes.

"That's okay, once we have the location of the meet we can have decoys set in along with SWAT." Gates spoke up taking control of the situation.

"Assuming they don't run us around first to make sure it is us and we are not followed." Castle said grimly.

"They could do that, yes." Gates confirmed, seeing no point in lying.

"We still have Anderson and Simmons." Esposito injected. "If we can break them before the exchange we can bring Bracken down."

"That is what I came out here to talk to you about." Gates said taking in a breath and despite the fact that she had not known the woman long Beckett could tell that the news was not going to be good.

"All of Anderson's contacts were go betweens, so we can't make a case on them alone." Gates explained calmly.

"What about Simmons?" Beckett asked, she wasn't sure how that could go wrong but she knew that it had.

"His lawyer got here and talked to the DA and then to him and he is now invoking the Fifth." Gates said gravely.

"What does that mean?" Castle asked desperately.

Gates sucked in another breath before answering. "It means that he is now claiming he was behind everything."

"They got to him!" Esposito exclaimed as he banged his fist down on the desk in front of him.

"It looks that way, Yes." Gates responded gravely.

"So unless the hostage crisis at the bank is resolved with a confession from Marks, the investigation is dead." Beckett observed unable to look at anyone in the room.

"I will not let it die, we will find a way to bring down this guy." Gates insisted.

"No." Castle injected firmly and this drew shocked looks from Beckett and everyone else in the room. "I saw the pictures on your desk. You have kids, don't put them in danger."

"You don't get to make that call Mr. Castle." Gates stated firmly.

"No, but it is my mother's case." Beckett said brokenly and then she looked from the captain to her two friend with a pleading look before she continued. "If it comes down to it we make the deal and all of you promise me you will go with the official story, don't throw your lives away."

Gates was about to speak when she was interrupted by a harsh male voice. "Detective Becket, Mr. Castle?" The voice asked and everyone in the room turned to see that it was coming from a tall bald man in suit who looked like he could use a blood donation from Dracula. He was flanked by half a dozen other men in suits. Gate started to step forward but the man ignored her and instead turned his attention to the writer in the wheelchair. "Special agent Eric Peterson, FBI." The man introduced himself and then added with an almost angry look in his eyes. "I would like a word with you regarding a matter of national security."

**Sorry this chapter wasn't longer and it is so late but this seemed like a good place to break off.**

**As for the chapter being so late, well everyone in my house got very sick last week and we have spent the whole week running from one doctor's office to another and since I don't have a laptop I just didn't have a chance to write. Sorry. Everyone is better now so updates will resume and if all goes well the story should be over by the end of the month.**

**Thanks for putting up with my delays and for all of your support.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help and support with this chapter.**


	46. Chapter 44

**Chapter 44**

"I think we are in a chicken truck." Jim Beckett called out into the darkness, hoping this news would be of some help to his daughter. He was dismayed when no reply came. He called out his daughter's name several times before deciding that the call had been cut off. That was when he turned his attention to the two women who were in the container with him. By now his eyes had adjusted to the darkness and he could just barely make out their forms against it. He lowered his head so he was just inches from their faces and when he spoke it was in as soft a whisper as he could manage. "Don't talk above a whisper." He warned. "We now know they can hear us so don't say anything that contradicts our story. One of us needs to get free so Kate and Richard do not hand themselves over to these guys."

The two women nodded that they understood just as a painful bump jolted them all and caused then to go sliding across the hard metal floor. "That felt like a speed bump." Alexis observed.

"We may be getting off of the main road so they can get gas or check on us." Jim Beckett whispered as he put the pieces together. "Everyone remember the plan and be ready to move, and remember anyone who gets away does not turn back for any reason." He instructed gravely. Just as he finished the truck his another bump and they all three felt it begin to slow down.

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"What do you want?" Castle demanded tersely as he turned his chair so that he was facing the Special Agent in Charge and his men. The writer was in no mood for games, further problems, or federal agents.

"We need to talk privately, now!" Peterson ordered and he seemed angry, he shot a heated look in the direction of Sorrenson who had been standing quietly beside Beckett's desk before turning his attention to Beckett and Castle.

It was at this juncture that Gates stepped forward, she was done being ignored. "No one talks to my people like that. You have something to say to them, you go through me."

"This is a matter of national security, we are taking over." Peterson said trying to dismiss the woman who was standing between him and his prey.

"I don't think so." Gate said firmly, refusing to back down. "You want to take over you go through channels and get me an order in writing from the commissioner of police, until then everything that happens in this precinct goes through me. That would most likely take the rest of the day so if your business really is as urgent as you seem to think it is then stop fighting me on this and get down to it."

"Can we at least talk privately?" Peterson said with a peevish sigh.

"As long as I am in the room, we can use my office." Gates replied firmly, not backing down.

"Okay." Peterson conceded for the moment but there was something about the look in his eye that told Gates this was far from over. He then turned his attention back to Castle and Beckett. "Would you mind joining us?" Gates gave them both a look that told them arguing was pointless and for the moment she seemed to be on their side so despite their misgiving they slowly followed Gates and Peterson into the captain's office.

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It had been about five minutes since they had hit the speed bumps when the three hostages felt the truck lurch to a stop. They tried to brace themselves but they still went sliding across the floor. This was followed by what sounded like a truck door being open and shut.

"Okay, this is it." Jim Beckett whispered. "Martha lie on the floor. Alexis, get ready to make as much noise as you can." Martha followed his instructions as he and Alexis made their way over to what they assumed was the door. "You ready?" Jim asked the teenage girl standing beside him, he knew they were about to take their lives into their hands but he didn't see any other way out of this. He was sure that once they had served their purpose they would all be killed any way, so what did they really have to lose?

"I am ready." Alexis answered as she took in a nervous breath. Alexis and the older man then began banging on the door as hard as they could with their fists and shouting as loud as they could. "Let us out! We need help in here! She's not breathing!" After a few moments of this they heard what sounded like crates being moved, it sounded like the plan was working so they kept banging and yelling as they braced themselves for the next part.

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"Okay, now that we have privacy would you mind explaining to me why you just burst in here and began obstructing an active case?" Gates demanded as she walked behind her desk after shutting the door to her office and pulling the blinds shut.

"Don't get high and mighty with me!" Peterson fumed in a way that would cause anyone besides Gates to take a step back. "I have four agents down and these two are withholding information vital to the case and national security!" Peterson's face took on it's first hints of color as he said the last part and turned to face Castle and Beckett who were sitting and standing just behind him.

"We are withholding the information because right now it is the only thing keep us and our families alive." Beckett shot back, she had gotten over the shock of the phone call and was no longer willing to let other people speak for her.

"Not to mention that every time we have worked with your office on this case there has been a leak." Castle added becoming even more animated then he already was.

"Are you implying that someone in my office is working for the suspect in this case?" Peterson asked as his face tried to turn red but didn't quite make it, it was clear he spent most of his time in an office and rarely saw the sun.

"No, I am a writer and would never use the word imply incorrectly like that." Castle retorted and his face could turn red. "I am stating as a fact that someone in your office is working for this guy and now my mother and daughter are in danger because of the way this case has been handled!"

"Don't forget that three agents lost their lives protecting your family." Peterson shot back as his voice grew cold. This caused the whole room to become quiet for a minute as everyone reflected on the fact that three men would not be returning to their families after today, four if Cauldwell was included in the count.

"That is true and I think we all need to calm down." Gates stated firmly, stepping in and taking control of the situation. "The facts can not be ignored, we have two hostage situations that need to be resolved and there is more then enough reason to believe that the person behind both of them has a contact in the local FBI office."

Peterson seemed to consider this a moment before he next spoke and when he did there was less emotion in his voice. "If that is true then there is more reason to tell me who is behind this since we need to find this contact and we can shut down the two hostage situations if we arrest him. I need to know who you are talking about and see your proof."

"How do we know it is not you?" Beckett asked coldly and Peterson seemed to be taken aback by this accusation.

"As I already said I am not doing anything that puts my family in danger." Castle stated firmly.

"Did it ever cross your mind that this person can't be trusted?" Peterson said with sarcasm dripping from every word. "You have no way of knowing that this suspect will let your family go, or that he will leave them alone in the future and you are talking about handing over the only leverage you have on him. He has no reason to keep his word after that."

"Well what else can I do?!" Castle shot back.

"We can take him down." Beckett stated quietly but there was a coldness and determination in her eyes that drew the attention of everyone in the room to her. When she next spoke her voice was full of emotion, but it was also soft and firm. "This man killed my mother and he took my father and even if the deal holds he will still kill other people in the future. We have no choice we have to take him down."

"Kate, we agreed that we would make the deal." Castle objected and for the first time his angry gaze fell on Beckett, he would not let anyone even her put Alexis or his mother in danger.

"Now I have had time to think about it calmly and I don't think the deal will work.." Beckett replied not letting Castle's anger cause her to raise her voice. "Peterson is right we have no way to enforce the deal and I do not intend to let some family in the future go through what mine did."

"Kate, please." Castle pleaded and despite his anger there were tears in his eyes. "He will have no reason to kill anyone else. We have to save Alexis, my mother, and your father."

"This will not save them." Beckett stated, still refusing to raise her voice. "We need another plan besides just giving in."

"Beckett you can't just ask me to ignore my heart." Castle pleaded one last time. "I will not make it if Alexis and my mother don't."

"I know that Castle." Kate stated to try and comfort him and then a thought crossed her mind. "Wait a second, what did you say about your heart?" She asked quickly.

"I said I couldn't go against it, why?" Castle asked puzzled and there were still tears on her face.

"Alexis said Martha's heart was effected by whatever drugs were used to knock them out. Castle, you didn't tell me your mother had a heart condition." Beckett explained quickly.

"She doesn't." Castle stated and then he slowly put the pieces together and when he did he started to panic. "We have find them before they do something stupid and get themselves killed!"

"They left by helicopter, they could be anywhere." Gates said as she sprung into action pulling up some information on her computer.

"Maybe not." Peterson stated and it seemed he was trying to be helpful for the first time. "The choppers were stolen from a local airfield and found returned to the field about twenty miles away. The security cameras were down so we didn't get a look at the kidnappers but that would indicate that the hostages were moved to a car of some kind."

"Hostages." Castle said thoughtfully and then he reached into one of the pockets of the chair and pulled out the four photos his father had given him and handed them to Gates. "These are photos of the four guys who have taken the hostages at the bank."

"Where did you get those?" Peterson asked cautiously.

"It doesn't matter. The point is you have to use them to find out who these men are and not let them leave that bank. We need a person who can provide a direct link to the mastermind now that Simmons has fallen through." Castle insisted.

Gates took the photos and went to her office door and barked out orders to an officer, by the time she returned Beckett was looking at a map on her computer. "Look at this." She said pointing to the map onscreen so that Castle and Peterson could see what she was pointing at. "There is a chicken packing plant just over a mile from the airfield and when my father tried to tell me where they were the only sound he got out before being cut off was the letter C. They could be in the back of a chicken truck."

"If they are that limits the number of routes they could take into New York and it means that they can not have gotten far." Castle said finishing the thought.

"I'll see about getting state and local police between here and Delaware on this." Peterson stated as he pulled out his cellphone. He didn't really care about the writer or the detective, he was far too cold for that, but he did know a chance to get leverage on someone when he saw it.

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In the bullpen Ryan and Esposito had not been idle, in fact the Irish detective was running up to his partner's desk at that moment. "Look at this." He said as he handed over a piece of paper he was holding. "I think I know how they turned Simmons."

"How?" Epsosito asked.

"Meet Clancy Simmons, his younger brother." Ryan began to explain as he took a seat across from his partner. "Their father did every petty thug job there was and they never knew who their mother was, after their father got life for murder, Simmons became a big time drug dealer. Clancy seems to have kept his nose clean and did well in school and is in NYU getting a business degree. He had some money troubles but they went away and then last year he was caught selling drugs. His big brother bailed him out and now he is out on parole."

"So you think Simmons has a soft spot for his younger brother and Bracken is threatening to mess him up?" Epsosito asked but he seemed to already know the answer.

"Either that or Simmons wants to use his brother for something when he gets his degree, so he doesn't want anything to screw it up." Ryan nodded in reply and then added. "Either way it is a pressure point but could be exploited to get Simmons to change his story and I have Clancy's address."

"Feel like taking a ride and maybe getting into some trouble?" Epsosito asked as he stood up from his desk.

"Do I ever." Ryan replied and with that the two detectives made their way to the elevator to find some trouble and maybe the answer to all of their problems.

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When the doors to the shipping container finally swung outwards and open at first the brightness of the light blinded the three prisoners and they could only hear the voices of their two captors, the voice were angry and yelling at them to get back. As their eye adjusted they could see the two men were in working cloths and had wool masks on. As they advanced Martha did her best impression of a dying woman, something she had a lot of practice with. At her age she played a lot of characters who died on stage, a fact that she was none too happy about. For someone as alive as her being reminded of her own mortality was not welcome in any form. She didn't get depressed but she did tend to throw a bit of a fit every time her agent brought her a part with yet another death scene in it.

As for a Alexis she cried and screamed for help, putting on quite a good act herself while she screwed up her courage and waited for a chance to make a break for it. She felt more alive in that moment then she had ever felt before in her life, as her body readied itself to either fight or run. It both excited and scared the teenage girl in a way that made her want to throw up but she worked hard to keep these feelings under control while she tried to remember the plan and what she had learned at the self defense classes she had once taken at school. She knew she was the most likely to get free and that if she did it was her duty to get help for the others, but she didn't like it. She didn't like the thought of leaving anyone behind, still she knew that if she was going to save her father's life she may have to take that chance. She couldn't let any of these conflicting thoughts show on her face so she focused on remembering what her grandmother had tried to teach her about acting and using that to convince the two thugs that her grandmother was really dying. It was the hardest thing she ever had to do in her life but knowing what was at stake she forced herself to do it any way.

Jim Beckett was readying himself to fight, it had been a long time since he had been in a real fight but he still knew a thing or two, he just needed to wait for his chance. Still he knew better then to try anything while both men were focusing their attention and their guns on the three of them. A moment later Martha made a big show of seeming to stop breathing. This got the attention of both men and the shorter of the two took a few steps ahead of his partner and tucking his gun in the waistband of his jeans, bent down and started searching for Martha's pulse. Jim Beckett was no fool and he knew in a second the jig would be up, as soon as these men discovered that Martha's heart beat was normal they would not get another chance to make a break for it, so he sprung into action. With a shout of "Run!" He leaped forward and punched the taller of the two men right on the jaw, he clearly wasn't expecting this and he stumbled back.

Alexis Castle was too shocked to really be aware of what was happening around her, all she knew was that there was a flurry of movement and the next thing she knew she was jumping off the back of the truck and into the open. She found herself on deserted stretch of country road with the chicken crates scattered about and corn fields on either side. She next became aware of the sound of movement and angry yells right behind her. Again her fight or flight instincts took over and she ran to the right and into one of the corn fields. She didn't have any idea what caused her to be thinking of old movies at a t time like that but she remembered one did what the characters did in it. After she had gone about fifty yards she threw herself to the ground and tried to remain as quiet as possible. One of the thugs had run after her but a minute later she heard him give up searching and make his way back to the truck. Finally having time to think she could only shake with fear and hope her grandmother had made it out too.

Alexis felt like she had lain there in the dirt for a lifetime but really it was only a minute. Then she heard a sound she had been dreading, it was a gruff male voice. "You have ten seconds to stand up or we shoot your dear old grandmother!" The voice called out and then it started a relentless count down to ten.

With tears in her eyes Alexis was about to stand up when she heard her Grandmother's voice call out. "Alexis don't do it, remember the plan!" The voice commanded, only to be silenced a moment later. For a moment Alexis was conflicted. After all her Grandmother was a hostage and these men needed her alive and she knew what the plan was. On the other hand they were heartless killers and if they shot her Grandmother the teenager knew she wasn't going to be able to live with herself.

It was as Alexis was debating all these facts that she heard the male voice return. "One!" It called out and then that was followed by unmistakable sound of a gunshot. Alexis Castle threw her head down into the dirt and began to cry.

**Well I hope you liked this chapter.**

**Thanks again for your support and reviews.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with edits to this chapter.**


	47. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45**

"Do you mind if we make a stop first?" Detective Esposito asked his partner as he looked down at an address he had written on his cellphone. He was driving precinct issued car and they were on their way to a meeting with a crook, or at least the brother of a crook but despite everything something had been weighing heavy on Esposito all day. His partner could tell he was tense and that it didn't just come from the danger, and he had no idea why.

"No, I guess not." The Irish detective replied carefully.

"Thanks." Epsosito replied without looking over at his partner and then added gravely. "I have a promise to keep and I am not sure I will be able to keep it later."

"Just don't take too long, lives are depending on us." Ryan reminded his friend.

"Don't worry I will not forget that, but if I die today I plan on keeping this promise first." Esposito replied and there was no emotion in his voice but the way he sat up a little straighter and fixed his gaze firmly on the road told Ryan that there was no talking him out of doing this, whatever it was. Still he did not like the reminder that their lives were in danger and he hoped this meant that he partner was not giving up.

"We will figure this out, we always do." He said, but he sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as he was the man sitting next to him.

"I am not giving up, I just want to get this taken care of." Esposito explained and and Ryan nodded that he understood as they made yet another turn. He had no idea where they were going but he knew that if Esposito was taking time out of the case for it then it had to be important, he could also tell his partner was not in the mood to talk so they rode in silence as for the first time today the full gravity of the events of the day had time to sink in for Ryan. He really hoped making this stop,whatever it was, would seem like a silly waste of time when they looked back on the events of the day at some future date.

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Gates had left her office to handle a few things in the precinct and this left Castle and Beckett alone in the room for the moment. Beckett didn't have much emotional stamina left after the events of the day but what she did have she was about to use up, she needed Castle to understand something. "Castle I need you to understand something. When I said that I couldn't lose you I didn't just mean I couldn't watch you die again, I can't watch you become someone else or lose us." She said gently as she bent down so she was eye level with the writer, but he wasn't looking at her, this was worse then she thought. "I need you to trust me and look at the big picture."

"The big picture?!" Castle fumed and he was still refusing to look at her but his face was turning red. "The big picture is that I am going to lose Alexis because you threw away my only chance of getting her back!" He was too lost in his own sense of panic to see anything other then the fact that his daughter was in danger and the only thing he could do to help had been taken away from him. Words came pouring out of his mouth faster then he could think about them and the damage they would do to the woman standing in front of him.

"That's enough!" Beckett barked she didn't mean to snap at him but after the events of the day she just couldn't take one more stress. "You know that I wouldn't put Alexis or your mother in danger, I know what it is like to lose family."

"I know that, but losing your mother is nothing like losing Alexis and I was given a chance to get her back, and now it's blown. That is the only thing in the world I care about right now and I will not forgive anyone who stands in my way." Castle retorted coldly.

Beckett was taken aback by this, she didn't realize things were that bad and it scared her, it also made her angry. "If you don't trust me then I guess this whole relationship was a mistake." Beckett said as angry tears streamed down her face.

"Maybe it was." Castle said still refusing to look at her. "All I know is I am getting my daughter back, no matter what." The writer then turned his chair and headed for the door.

"Wait." Beckett called after him, she was pleading now but she didn't care. "Don't let it end this way."

"I need some air." Was all Castle said in reply as he made his way out of the door and Beckett was left to dry her tears before her captain returned.

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The Apartment building that Ryan and Esposito found themselves on the fourth floor of was not the worst in the city but it was not the best either, it had a distinctly middle class feel to it. The people who lived in it were clearly doing alright but were still working class. The doors were all solid wood and had nice brass numbers on them. Ryan followed Esposito's lead, his partner had not said a word on the drive over but he was clearly bracing himself for something. They made their way to apartment 414, and after Esposito checked his note one last time to make sure he had the right address he raised his hand and knocked.

A Moment later the door opened and they were greeted by an older woman with gray hair. She looked tired, as if she had seen the worst of what life had to offer and it was sheer force of will that kept her going. She didn't look like the type of person who you could win an argument with.

"Is this the Cauldwell residence?" Esposito asked and suddenly Ryan had a sinking feeling about where they were and why.

"It is." The woman answered gruffly. "Who are you?" She asked and she positioned herself in such a way that the two detectives could not get a good look inside the apartment.

"I am detective Esposito and this is my partner detective Ryan." Esposito answered and they both held out their Ids for the woman to inspect. After a moment of looking at them with what seemed to be reading glasses on she seemed to believe them so Epsosito asked a question of his own. "Who are you?"

"May Parker, Social services." The woman answered. "If you are the police you must be here to talk to Mary, well she is in no shape to talk to the police. She already had to talk to the FBI and she is in the middle of packing."

"Packing, why?" Ryan asked shocked and now the guilt was driving him crazy.

"Because she has to go into the system, she has no family and nowhere else to go." The woman explained gruffly. "Now if you will excuse me she is very tired and has a lot to deal with." May answered and tried to slam the door in their face but Esposito quickly got his foot in the door.

"We are not here to ask her questions." This caused May to draw the door open just a little and to fix the two detectives with a questioning gaze. "The truth is." Esposito said as he took in a breath. "We were with Mike when he died and he asked us to check up on his daughter Mary." A look of guilt passed over Ryan's face as Esposito lied for him. He couldn't believe how stupid and selfish he had been the day before, still self pity wasn't going to fix anything so he remained quiet. A thought then crossed his mind and he sent a quick text on his phone while he and Esposito waited for the older woman's response.

May Parker seemed unsure of what to do in the situation and when she spoke it was slowly. "I am not sure that is a good idea right now, she has been through a lot."

"Mrs. Parker, please let them in." They heard a voice call from inside the apartment and with a heavy sigh the older woman stepped aside and let the two men enter the apartment. The door opened up into a midsized, tastefully decorated living area and all the other rooms seemed to branch off from one side or the other of that room. About five feet in front of the detectives stood the person to whom the voice that had allowed them in belonged and the two men's sadness and guilt was over come with surprise for a moment.

The girl was dressed like a typical high school girl, she looked to be around fourteen or fifteen and it was clear she had been crying hard, she also looked strongly middle eastern. Her skin was a shade of dark brown, her hair was long and black, and and strong piercing gaze shot out of her eyes at the two men who stood in front of her. "We can talk in my room, where we will have some privacy." She instructed calmly, seeming older then she really was and she led them into a decent sized bedroom. There were open suitcases and boxes and it was clearly in the middle of being packed up. Mary sat down on the foot of the bed and waited for one of the two older men to begin. When they didn't right away, she spoke first and it was with some force. "I am not what you expected, given that my father was Irish, am I?" She asked.

"No. it's not that. It's just it's hard to know where to begin." Ryan offered weakly.

"I have to explain it to everyone else so I may as well explain it to you." The girl said with a sigh. "My dad was working a case in the US embassy in Saudi Arabia, my mother was seeking asylum because she had just converted to Christianity, do you know what the penalty is for a Saudi national converting to the christian faith?" The girl asked, the two detectives nodded that they did not so she answered them. "It is death." She spat out rather harshly, she took a moment to calm herself. "My father and mother hit it off and got married quickly and moved to the states, then four years ago my mother was taken from us by a drunk driver." Then the girl began to break down and cry.

Esposito was not comfortable around kids or teenagers but the sight before him moved him to sit down on the bed and put a comforting arm around the girl. "It's okay." He said soothingly. "your father was a good man, he saved our lives and if I could have given my life to save him I would have." This filled Ryan with more guilt but he couldn't bring himself to say anything so he let his partner continue. "Your father didn't want to leave you and he wanted me to tell you that he loved you very much, he died trying to help us take down some very bad people."

"Thanks." The girl said with a sniff.

"They are really making you move out this fast?" Ryan asked the girl, somewhat changing the subject.

"Mrs. Parker said they have to move me out today and she was sent over to help me pack." The girl explained and she was clearly glad to have something practical to focus her mind on.

"If there is anything you need here is my card." Esposito said as he handed the girl a scrap of paper and at that moment Ryan's phone beeped and he read a message.

"There is only one thing I need." The girl said looking Esposito in the eye. "Get justice for my dad, don't let the people who did this get away with it, no matter who they are."

"You have my word." Esposito said gravely and Ryan could tell that he meant it. "Do you mind if I help you pack some of this stuff up?" He asked and he clearly wasn't ready to leave yet.

"Okay." Mary replied and she got up and started putting some more stuff into one of the suitcases.

"I need to use the bath room." Ryan said as he excused himself.

He then made his way out of the room and back into the living room. He saw no sign of the older social worker so he went looking for her. He heard noise coming from a small room on the other side of the living room, it turned out to be a small study and in it he found May Parker with her back to him as she was emptying papers and computer discs from the desk into a cardboard box.

"Pretty heartless the way they are making the kid move before her dad is even buried." Ryan said and May jump, turning to face him.

"What can I say, the system stinks sometimes, but I try to make the best of it." May said after taking in a breath.

"Yeah, but I didn't think social services did stuff like this, as fast as this." Ryan said as he entered the room but he was careful to keep about six feet between himself and the older woman. "Also I would have thought you would have left the stuff in the office for the Feds or the NYPD, since it could have something to do with the case."

"I was told to box up everything so I box up everything, I just do as I am told." The woman replied lightly.

"You know another strange thing, I checked social services says they didn't send anyone here." Ryan said and his hand slowly made it's way down to his gun.

"What?!" The woman exclaimed with disbelief all over her face. "That's got to be some sort of screw up." and she reached into the right hand pocket of the light jacket she was wearing.

"Normally I would believe that." Ryan said lightly, but then his eyes went cold. "But social workers don't carry .45 revolvers in their jacket pockets."

Parker tried to fire the gun from inside her pocket but Ryan was quicker and his shot hit the dead center of mass. The room exploded the sound of a gun shot and the smells of powder and blood. The older woman fell to floor with blood gushing out of the wound on her stomach. Ryan kicked the gun away from her and then bent down to try and stop the bleeding with one hand as he reached for his cellphone with the other.

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Castle was still fuming as he drove his chair from one side of the precinct to the other. He couldn't believe Beckett would betray him like this or that she wouldn't take the one chance they had to save Alexis. Deep down he knew she was really trying her best to save his daughter but that wasn't the part of his heart his brain was listening to at that moment, his brain could only focus on the fact that he was about to lose his little girl.

Suddenly the bullpen was full of movement and a moment later Beckett and Gates went rushing past him to the elevator.

"Beckett, what is going on?" Castle demanded.

"I don't have time to explain." Beckett shot back. "Ryan and Esposito have been involved in a shooting, it seems someone went after the daughter of the FBI agent who Ryan and Esposito were working with yesterday."

Castle was shock, he had been completely wrong. He felt like a complete jerk, now he knew for sure Beckett was right and Alexis would never be safe as long as Bracken was out there. What was more he had destroyed his relationship with Beckett by being a spoiled brat and refusing to trust her. He had destroyed everything good in his life. He was a pig. Before he could say so Beckett and Gates were in the elevator and gone, leaving him to mutter "I'm sorry" over and over again to himself quietly. His whole life had just blown up in his face.

**Well there is chapter 45, I hope you liked it.**

**Thanks for your feedback and support.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for help pointing out typos and other problems with this chapter and thanks to everyone who leaves feedback on one of my chapters.**


	48. Chapter 46

**Chapter 46**

Jim Beckett found himself watching helplessly as the shorter of the two thugs grabbed Martha Rodgers and dragged the actress to the door of shipping container. When Jim Beckett had punched the taller of the two it was clear the younger man had been taken off guard and had not been expecting trouble from an older lawyer, the thug had quickly corrected that mistake and shoved Jim against the metal side of the shipping container, hard. Jim had the breath knocked out of him for a moment and then found the thug's full weight pressing onto his back and muzzle of the the pistol pressed into the back of his skull. There was nothing Jim Beckett could do but watch as the other thug started a ten count to when he would kill Martha. To Jim Beckett's relief he saw that the thug did have some brains and he wasn't about to kill one hostage to try and get another back, instead he fired his gun in the air as he kept Martha's mouth covered with his other hand so she could not make a sound.

"There goes your dear old grandma." The man called out after Alexis in a taunting tone of voice. "Do you want the old man to die too?!" He then started another ten count but when he got to eight he cried out in pain. He had let his hand slip a little and Martha had seen her chance and bit down on his hand hard enough to draw blood. This caused him to let go of the older woman just long enough for her to get free and dash out of the truck as fast as she could. Two shots were fired after her and Jim Beckett found himself being hit in the face with a pistol hard enough to make his nose bleed, but a moment later Martha was in the corn field as well. She didn't know it but she was on the other side of the road from her granddaughter, but she was safe for the moment.

"You idiot!" The taller of the two thugs yelled at the shorter one. "Do you have any idea what they will do to us if they get away?!"

"Look what that bitch did to me!" The shorter thugs said as he held out his bleeding hand. He then punched Jim in the stomach hard enough to floor the older man, luckily Jim Beckett knew how to take a punch.

"We don't have enough of us to search those fields and it is only a matter of time before someone drives by and reports a broken down chicken truck to the police." The taller man explained, unimpressed with his comrade's wound.

"Well then let's just cut our losses, kill him, and get out of here." Short thug whined. "I am not getting paid enough to go to prison."

"Then you will end up dead, are you getting paid enough for that?" Tall thug pointed out in a mocking tone of voice.

"Look if we lose these guys the boss is going down." Short thug argued, trying to make his partner see reason.

"We don't know that." Tall thug objected.

"If he wasn't then how come he decided to risk having us attack an FBI safe house on such short notice, if he goes down no one will be coming after us and we will be clear." Short thug argued, and there was a certain logic to what he was saying. It was clear tall thug was not used to short thug making any kind of sense because he didn't say anything right away and let short thug continue. "I say we kill him, torch the truck, and get out of here."

Jim Beckett didn't like the sound of any of this plan at all but tall thug had his right leg pressed down hard on the lawyer's back and was pointing a gun at him so there wasn't much he could do about it at the moment.

"It's too late for that." Tall thug said after giving short thug's plan a moment or two of thought. "We killed three feds, they will never stop looking for us. We can't have the boss and the feds after us and for all we know the boss could get at us even if he is in prison."

"We had nothing to do with that, we were just the drivers." Short thug objected.

"Do you really think the cops or the feds will believe that?!" Tall thug asked and short thug seemed to take his point. "We have to call for back up and get both of those sluts back, that is our only chance."

"What if the boss kills us for losing them in the first place? You know how he doesn't like screw ups." Short thug pointed out.

"Then I will just tell him it was all your fault." Tall thug said coldly. "Now make the call while I tie this one up." He ordered and short thug reached into his pocket and pulled out his cellphone.

Jim Beckett knew he had to do something fast if he was going to save Kate's life and keep her from handing herself over to these people so he decided to take a chance and speak up. "You know there is another option where neither of you have to take the blame or die or go to prison." he said in a calm voice.

"Shut up!" Tall thug yelled as he punched the older man in the head and roughly tied his hands behind his back.

"Let him talk." Short thug yelled out as he slowly put his cellphone away. "It will not hurt to listen." He then bent down so he was looking at the older man who's face was pressed sideways against the floor.

"I mean my daughter and the FBI found proof linking the boss to this operation and they were taking it to the DA, that is why we were taken, to try and get her to turn it over. By now the proof will be in the hands of the DA and they will have warrants for your boss and you are right he can not touch you once he is taken down."

"Don't listen to him." Tall thug ordered as he finished tying Jim up.

"How does that help us?" Short thug answered nervously.

"I am a Lawyer." Jim pointed out and he kept his voice calm despite receiving another punch to the face from tall thug.

"Let him talk." Short thug said fixing tall thug with an angry glare, he then returned his attention to the older man on the floor. "How does any of this help us?"

"Simple Delaware is still a death penalty state, so if you get taken down for the murder of the three agents you will go to death row." He gave short thug a moment to think this over before he continued. "However I can help you draw up a deal where you make it clear that you didn't know the plan was to kill three FBI agents and you were not given a choice after the fact. If you tell them what you know and put that together with the fact that as soon as you were on your own you let your hostages go and turned yourselves in, I don't see you getting more then five years." Jim left out the fact that he didn't work criminal defense so he had no way of knowing if anything he said was true, it sounded good and he was playing for his daughter's life.

"Is that so?" Short thug asked thoughtfully as he stood up.

"He's playing you!" Tall thug objected.

"In this day and age, with DNA you can't hide for the rest of your lives, and five years beats getting killed today by your boss or two years from now when the feds catch up with you." Jim pointed out.

"You shut up!" Tall thug order as he shoved his gun in Jim's face.

"Hey, he could be our ticket out of this and it was your idea to pull over because you didn't want to lose a hostage!" Short thug was yelling now and out of the corner of his eye Jim thought he saw him pull his gun on tall thug.

"What are you doing?" Tall thug demanded.

"You screwed this up and now you want to pin it all on me, I am not going to let you do that." Short thug explained and he was sounding desperate.

I will not tell you a second time to put that gun away." Tall thug said coldly.

"You think you can take me?" Short thug asked with disbelief. "Go ahead and try it."

A second late the container was filled with the echoes of two gunshots almost on top of each other and Jim Beckett found that he couldn't hear anything beside a loud ringing in his ears. He did however see short thug drop to the floor hard, with blood gushing out of a head wound. He then felt the splatter of warm blood hit his back and neck and a second later he had the wind knocked out of him by tall thug falling on top of him.

Jim didn't know how long he struggled to get up on the hard metal floor, he only knew it felt like hours. At last he was able to get out from under tall thug and stand up. He found that he still could not hear a thing besides ringing in his ears but looking around his eyes confirmed what he suspected, the two thugs had shot each other dead. He couldn't find anything to cut the ropes that bound his hands with, so instead he decided to go look for Martha and Alexis. He carefully let himself down off of the back of the truck and then began calling out for them. He hoped they were still near by. He had no idea if they could hear him but a few minutes later he saw from each side of the road a woman come out of the corn field with tears in their eyes and they came running towards him. At that moment he didn't think he had ever seen two more grateful looking people. He couldn't hear what they said as they hugged each other, but he didn't need to be able to hear to understand what they felt at that moment. Things were finally looking up.

**Well there is chapter 46, I hope you enjoyed it.**

**I will be posting corrections to the last two chapters later today, and I will try to have the next chapter up before friday.**

**Thanks for reading and for all of your support.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	49. Chapter 47

**Chapter 47**

The Cauldwell apartment was now a crime scene and because the unknown woman who was posing as a social worker had been shot by Detective Kevin Ryan, that crime scene was firmly under the control of the internal affairs division of the New York City Police Department.

One of the duties of the internal affairs division of any police department is to investigate all officer involved shootings. These investigations are conducted with a degree of respect for the officer involved but they are also held to same standards as the investigations of shootings made by any normal citizen. The IAD detectives work the scene the same as any other crime scene and question everyone involved, including the officers the same way any other suspect would be questioned. They look for the same things any detective looks for in any case. Signs that witnesses are lying, or holding back information. Stories that change when told repeatedly. Details that don't add up when held up to the light of common sense or how human beings normally act in a crisis. Last they look for signs that the story told by the officers involved doesn't match physical evidence found at the crime scene.

SOP is for the officer involved to have their weapon taken away and to be given desk duty until IAD rules that it was a "clean shooting", in most cases this ruling comes down fairly quickly as most officers are trained in such a way that they only draw their weapons when there is a clear cut case of either themselves or the public being in danger. For every questionable case where an officer seems to have ignored their training there are hundreds of clear cut cases that never make the news because the officer was clearly justified in their use of deadly force. Still the removal of the weapon and the officer from normal duty does give the investigations a feeling of guilty until proven otherwise, that police cases do not normally have in this country. This may be why IAD detectives are not well liked by other offices and why they are seen as being out to get other cops. In reality part of their job is to protect their fellow officer by conducting their investigations in such a way that they can not be accused of covering anything up so it is clear to the public that over all the local police department can be trusted to protect and serve their local area. Doing everything they can to uncover bad shootings leads to greater public trust and thus makes the police officer on the street safer and less likely to get into a situation where deadly force will be needed.

At least that is how the system is supposed to work in an ideal world, but the world we live in is not ideal. In reality no one likes being accused of murder by their co-workers and despite the best efforts of police departments across the country to separate the two divisions, many members of the general public still see internal affairs detectives as being the same as any other cops and just as likely to engage in a cover up of a bad shooting. This places all parties between a rock and a hard place to say the least. On the one hand the accused do not trust those accusing them and see them as being on a witch hunt to please the more vocal members of the public. On the other hand the investigators are not liked or trusted by those they investigate and no matter how the case ends either the public or the department they are trying to protect from both bad officers and a bad public image are not happy with them. It is a tightrope that can only be walked by sticking to the rules on all points and by working cases quickly so there is no chance for anything to be hidden. In the end it may be the most stressful job in all of modern law enforcement but deep down everyone involved knows it is needed if the police are going to continue to serve the public in a free country, so like every other hard part of a police officer's job, they push through it.

Captain Victoria Gates came from this world and understood it better then most, having been on both sides of an IAD investigation in her time, so she was not surprised to find them already at the apartment and in control of the scene when she and Beckett arrived. She asked a few questions and found that the suspect was not dead, yet. The parimedics had taken her out of the office a few minutes before and now IAD was working the whole apartment along with CSU. When she and Beckett entered the apartment the first thing they noticed was Ryan being questioned by two IAD detectives at the dining room tabled. The next thing they noticed was Epsosito sitting on a couch in the main living area with a very upset looking teenage girl beside him. Another detective was standing in front of the sofa and it was clear Esposito was doing his best to answer the questions he was being asked but he was clearly more interesting in comforting the girl who sat beside him.

Upon seeing the girl Beckett's heart started to break, she reminded her so much of herself. She was much younger then Beckett had been when her whole life had been torn apart, but she saw the same grief mixed with anger and confusion along with an attempt to put on a brave face and not let anyone see how badly she was hurting that had taken over her own life when her mother had been taken from her. Given that they knew the suspect had posed as a social worker Beckett guessed the girl had no family to lean on. That made it all the worse. Beckett had lost her father to drink, but when he was sober he had been able to support her, this girl didn't even have that and that broke Beckett's heart. If she needed any more motivation to get Bracken she had just gotten it. She had no idea what she could do to help the girl and Esposito seemed to be trying his best to help her so she instead just walked over and stood quietly beside the sofa waiting for a chance to do something helpful.

Gates made her way over to the table where it seemed the two IAD detectives were finishing up with detective Ryan. The lead detective was a man Gates knew, he was over ten years older then herself, heavy set, and he had a pair of think glasses on. He saw Gates coming towards him and made his way over to her.

"Hi, Tom." Gates said quietly so no one else could hear them speak.

"Hey, Victoria. It's been too long." Tom returned with a smile. "Or is that Captain Gates now?" He asked.

"Don't start with that Captain stuff, everyone knows you should have got this promotion. You taught me everything I know." Gates replied, putting Tom at ease.

"I wouldn't know what to do with it, I am too old to learn a new job." Tom said with a shrug. "How have you been?"

"Good." Gates answered. "And you?"

"I can't complain. I retire in six months, so then maybe my doctor will get off my back about working too hard." Tom replied gruffly.

"The force will not be the same without you?" Gates said taking in a somber breath and then she moved on to the real reason she was there. "How does it look?" She asked motioning with her head towards Ryan.

"I know he is one of your people but there are a few details that make this look bad." Tom answered with a sigh.

"You know I wouldn't want any of my people to get any special treatment. You taught me that everyone should be held to the same standard." Gates said soberly and then preceded with her next question. "What is wrong with this one?"

"Well the details of the crime scene seem to match his story but he didn't alert his partner when he found out for sure the suspect was not a social worker and he confronted her alone and gave her plenty of time to draw instead of trying to arrest. It looks like he forced the confrontation so he would have an excuse to shoot the suspect." Tom answered honestly and it was clear he didn't enjoy giving Gates this news.

"That is hard to believe." Gates said taking in a breath. "Did he have anything to say about this?"

"Only that he wasn't sure that she was not a social worker when he went in to talk to her. He thought maybe it was a paperwork screw up, and he wasn't thinking clearly." Tom reported gravely.

"Well that isn't going to look good to a review board." Gates said knowingly.

"Yeah." Tom said taking in a breath. "I mean it may turn out fine, since the suspect isn't dead and this is a high stress situation but we have had to take his gun and he will have to be suspended until we see how this all plays out."

"I understand, do what you have to do." Gates said, not wanting to make things any harder on her old friend then she had to. Still she felt like she had gotten to know Ryan well enough over the past few days that the whole situation didn't feel right to her.

"There is one other thing." Tom then added. "When he checked up on the suspect he didn't have another cop do it, he had William Sorrenson do it for him, you know anything about that?"

"He is helping us with this case, there are only a few people who know the details and we are short handed, he is okay." Gates answered vouching for the former FBI agent.

"Okay, I hope this plays out alright." Tom said after giving the mater a moment of thought.

"So do I." Gates replied.

Over at the couch Esposito finally finished answering questions and he saw that his partner was done as well. He wanted to go over and talk to him, but he didn't like the idea of leaving Mary Cauldwell alone. He knew it wasn't her place but he turned and looked up at Beckett. She seemed to read his mind because she answered him before he asked the question. "It's okay, I will stay with her." Beckett said softly and Esposito nodded gratefully and then stood up and made his way over to the dining table leaving Beckett to sit down beside the teenage girl.

There was an awkward silence that settled between the detective and the teenage girl, after a few moments Beckett decided to speak. "My name is Kate Beckett." She offered weakly. It was not a brilliant start but it was the best she could come up with given the day she was having.

"Mary Cauldwell, did you work with my father too?" The girl replied a moment later without looking at the detective and she also scooted a little farther away. She clearly didn't want to be near anyone at that moment, Beckett knew that feeling all too well. She decided to try and draw the girl out of her shell as best as she could.

"I never met him but he sounds like a good man." Beckett answered honestly.

"I guess he was, it seems like all we did lately was fight." Mary said with a shrug.

"How old are you?" Beckett asked.

"Fourteen." The girl replied.

"I remember being the same way with my father when I was your age." Beckett said with a sad smile and that reminded her that she had no way of knowing if she would ever see her own father again, but before she could think any more about that Mary spoke up.

"Well I will never get a chance to know if things would ever get better between us." Mary said sadly, still not looking at the woman seated beside her. This broke Beckett's heart and she knew she had to say something.

"I know it seems like your world is falling apart now." Beckett started but was then interrupted by the teenager sitting beside her.

"Please don't give me that cliché about life getting better. I have lost my only family so I will will spend the next four years in the foster system, I don't think the nightmares will ever stop, and the last thing I said to my father was that I hated him." Mary said harshly and then she burst into tears. Beckett tried to put a comforting arm around the girl but she pulled away. "Don't touch me, you have no idea who I am or what I am going through." The girl ordered as she stood up quickly.

"You are right I don't." Beckett agreed in a soothing tone a second later and this caused Mary to at least look at the older woman for a second. "I lost my mother to a violent death, but I was older then you and I still had my family, but I do want to help you."

"I'm sorry." Mary said with a sniff and she sat back down on the couch but still wasn't getting too close to Beckett. "Did catching the person who did it make things any better?" She asked a moment later.

"I wouldn't know, we never caught the people who did it. In fact the same people who killed my mother killed your father." Beckett answered, seeing no reason to lie to the girl. This was an awful lot to lay on such a young girl but Beckett could tell by looking at her that a lie would only make things worse.

"You can't tell me who it is because it is an active case right?" Mary asked looking over at Beckett again.

"That and knowing would put you in danger." Beckett answered.

"My dad could never talk about his work either and it seemed like that was all he did after my mom died, so all we could do was fight." Mary said as a tear ran down her cheek.

Beckett nodded that she understood. "Some times fathers have a hard time seeing what is in front of them, but I don't think that means they stop loving their kids. My father started drinking and was never the same after my mother died." Beckett said, and if she had time to think she would have been shocked that she was being so honest with a stranger, but she was too distracted by the pain she saw in Mary's eyes to think about how she was reacting to her. She just wanted to take some of the pain away, that was all that she cared about at that moment.

"Yeah, I guess. I just wish he and I had been able to say that when he was alive. I wish he hadn't died thinking that I hated him." Mary said and then it was if a dam broke behind her eyes and the tears came flooding out even stronger then before.

"Believe me he knew." Beckett said trying to comfort Marry but the teenager still wouldn't let the detective touch her so instead Beckett handed her a card. "I really do want to help you, please use this card whenever you need it. I will pick up my phone for you." Beckett instructed and Mary Cauldwell didn't know what it was but there was something about the look in the older woman's eyes that made her believe the woman and she took the card.

Slowly her tears got under control and then as she was wiping her eyes she spoke and this time her voice was stern. "There is one thing you can do for me. Get the people who took my father from me."

"You can count on it." Beckett promised and then a sad silence settled between the detective and the teenager once again, broken only a moment later when Beckett said "You are not alone." and at that moment Mary Cauldwell wanted to believe it was true but she couldn't quite make herself believe it so she just nodded and remained quiet.

Esposito didn't even wait to be finished sitting down at the table across from his partner before letting him have it, he was mad. "What were you thinking going in there without me? Do you know how that looks to IAD, plus what would you have down if she had been ready for you? What about Jenny, what would I have told her if that woman had killed you?" He demmanded.

"Sorry, this was just something I had to handle on my own." Was the only explanation Ryan quietly offered.

"Why, you think that will make up for what happened to Cauldwell? Do you really think getting yourself killed or fired will make things right?" Esposito asked gravely.

"I just had to do something." Ryan replied after taking in a breath.

"Let me tell you something as someone who has been there." Esposito began sternly. "In combat mistakes happen and sometimes those mistakes cost lives and nothing you can do will make it better."

"So what, stop trying?" Ryan asked with disbelief all over his face.

"No." Esposito answered. "It just means that you are not doing anyone any good by ending up dead yourself, it will not bring them back. The people left working with you need to know you have their back and you are not going to do something stupid."

"Okay, I'm sorry." Ryan said a moment latter, after giving his partner's words some thought.

"Now I need to go pick up Simmons brother but can you do something for me?" Esposito asked as he stood up.

"Sure anything." Ryan answered looking up at his partner.

"Keep an eye on Cauldwell's daughter and make sure she is taken back to the 12th, after what happened here I don't trust her to be left alone or with anyone else." Esposito explained.

"You got it." Ryan nodded his understanding and then Esposito turned and walked out of the apartment.

As Esposito made his way out of the door and past the crime scene tape he spotted something that surprised him, it was Castle in his wheelchair coming down the hall towards him. "Hey Castle, what are you doing here?" He asked, clearly surprised.

"I need to talk to Beckett." Was the writer's quiet reply and then he added. "What happened here, is everyone all right?"

Esposito then took a minute to fill his friend in on what had happened and on the situation with Ryan. Castle thanked him and then they turned and went their separate ways.

When Castle entered the apartment it took him a few minutes to spot Beckett sitting beside a teenage girl, thankfully she seemed to hear his chair and spot him at the same moment and know what he was there for. Beckett called Ryan over and handed the girl off to the Irish detective and made her way over to Castle, they met in the small kitchen area where they could talk quietly. The only thing that separated the kitchen from the main living area of the apartment was a counter and a stove, but it was the most privacy the writer and the detective were going to get at a crime scene so it would have to do.

"Castle, what do you want?" Beckett asked with a huff, she was in no mood for another fight and to her surprise she didn't get one.

"I just wanted to say I am sorry, you are right I should trust you and I am sorry I didn't. If you don't think the trade is a good idea I will not make it." Castle said looking up at her and there was no defense and no self pity anywhere on his face. The only time Beckett could recall seeing this same look on his face was when he had first said he was sorry for opening up her mother's case. Right then she knew the whole thing had been a mistake that would not be repeated, and she knew the same thing applied to this situation.

"It's a high stress situation, we are going to make mistakes." Beckett offered, looking down at the writer. Normally she would want to talk more about the whole situation but with their families still in danger she hoped this would be enough for the writer so she could get back to working the case and hopefully get everyone back alive.

"So, am I forgiven?" Castle asked.

"Yes, you are forgiven." Beckett replied.

"Good, because something about this whole situation was bugging me all the way over here." Castle said, turning on a dime into case mode.

"What's that?" Beckett asked, she knew it must be important if he was leaving their personal situation and the kidnapping of their relatives to the side for even a moment to talk about something else.

"Well I may not know everything there is to know about law enforcement but it seems to me that if this were a case involving the NYPD there would be officers, grief counselors, and maybe even a real social worker here to take care of the daughter of a fallen officer." Castle explained quickly.

Beckett mentally slapped herself for not spotting this sooner. "You are right, there should have been other people here."

"So who called them off?" Castle asked gravely and Beckett could tell he had come to the same conclusion she was coming to.

"The only person I can think of who could do that would be the Special Agent in Charge." She answered a moment latter and a chill ran through her blood as she thought about what this implied for them and their chances of getting their family back.

Castle looked like he was about to say something but then his cellphone began to ring, it was a number he didn't know but for all he knew it could be about Alexis or his mother so he picked up the phone and carefully put it on speaker. "Castle." he said.

"Dad, we got away and we are in a corn field somewhere in Maryland, I got one of our kidnapper's cellphones and Grams is on the other one talking to 911 right now." Alexis' voice came over the phone and at that moment a feeling of pure relief and joy flooded over both Castle and Beckett.

"Is my dad okay?" Beckett asked, unable to hold the question back.

"He got beat up but he is okay." Alexis replied quickly. "We are hiding in a cornfield." Alexis repeated this piece of information because she knew it was important and she was not sure how much longer she would be able to talk.

"Good, stay there and we will send someone to pick you up." Castle instructed and he looked as if a ten thousand pound weight had been lifted off of his back.

"Well make it fast, more guys just showed up and they are looking for us." Alexis replied lowering her voice to a whisper.

Beckett knew she had to act quickly, so she did. "Turn the phone down and stop making noise so they can't hear you but leave the phone on so we can trace the call." The detective instructed and she sounded a lot calmer then she really was at that moment.

"Okay." Came a whispered answer a moment later.

"No matter what happens we will get you back." Castle said firmly and he knew his daughter couldn't hear him but for some reason he felt like it needed to be said any way. Beckett didn't say anything at the time but she was grateful to hear herself included in that promise. The odds may have still been stacked against them, but they were a team and together she knew they could beat this, somehow.

**Sorry this chapter is so late. I wrote and rewrote it about a dozen times and to tell the truth I am still not happy with it. Maybe it is just my OCD kicking into overdrive but something just keeps feeling off about it to me. I may edit major parts of this latter based on feedback from you guys.**

**Any way, thanks for reading and reviewing.**

**Thanks for all of the reviews, the feedback was a big help in helping me fix this chapter.**

**Thanks once again to Caskettfan5 for help with spotting typos in this chapter, you are the best.**


	50. Sorry, no internet at my house

**I am really sorry about this but I lost all internet access at my house so I can only get online right now at the library and I want feedback on characters as I write them so I don't want to post five chapters at a time in case I make a mistake that needs to be corrected, plus I want to do some research so I can get the details right and I can't do that from my local library right now.**

**I know I am starting to sound like a broken record at this point but things just keep going wrong. The good news is that by the end of next week I should have the internet back up at my house.**

**Sorry about the wait and for any PMs or reviews I have missed.**

**Thanks for hanging in there, you guys are the best and you have helped me become a better writer and I grateful.**

**Again really sorry about this, I feel so bad about making you wait.**


	51. Chapter 48

**Chapter 48**

It took only a matter of moments for Captain Gates to be called over to the kitchen where Castle was still on the open line with his daughter Alexis, and for the police captain to be filled in on what was going on. She in turn called over a tech with a laptop who quickly hooked Castle's cellphone up to the laptop via USB, she then began running a trace. The only sound that could be heard over the phone was Alexis' labored breathing, Castle did his best to calm her down despite the fact that he was on the edge of panic himself. He wanted nothing more at that moment then to be able to tell his little girl that everything would be alright but he knew that not only would this be a lie, but his voice coming over her phone could give his daughter's position away. So he had to remain silent and keep himself under control.

It was as this struggle was being waged inside of him that Castle became aware of the tech pointing out something on the computer screen to Captain Gates, Castle looked and saw to his great relief that they had a location and it was a back country road in Maryland. As Gates pulled out her cellphone to make a call Castle knew he had to say something but his mouth went dry and he found that speech was impossible at that moment. Thankfully Beckett spoke up and said what was on his mind, he didn't know how he would get through this situation without her by his side.

"Don't call the FBI, just the state and local police and make sure they know that these guys took out an FBI team." Beckett instructed, her voice barely above a whisper. Normally Gates would have objected to being given orders in this fashion but she knew what the situation was and she was not about to waste valuable time asserting herself at a time like this, to Castle and Beckett's relief the older woman just nodded that she understood and preceded to look up contact info on her cellphone.

Castle then had a thought, he may not be able to do a thing to help but he knew who could. "Beccket, give me your phone." he instructed quietly, he didn't want to hang up on his daughter. Beckett looked confused but handed the phone over and a couple of minutes latter Castle was talking to the team that was supposed to protect his family at the FBI save house. "They can be there in about half an hour and if local PD pick Alexis, my mother and your father up first, then they will take it from there and get them on a plane to France." Beckett nodded that she understood, she was a little too stunned by all of this to speak at the moment. Her throat had gone completely dry and she couldn't think of anything to say in the first place. Her eye just joined Castle's in watching his cellphone which was sitting on the desk, waiting to hear some sign that everything was going to be alright.

Over on the couch Ryan was doing his best to break the ice with teenage girl who sat beside him, so far he had no luck in breaching her walls. For her part Mary Cauldwell but as much distance between herself and the stranger who had gotten saddled with the job of babysitting her. She didn't need a babysitter, what she wanted most in all the world at that moment was just to be left alone, but these people wouldn't leave. So instead she just sat there, feeling like a stranger in her own home trying to piece together what the adults in the kitchen were up to.

"I'm sorry this had to happen here." Ryan offered weakly, looking over at the teenage girl.

"Don't be, I'm glad you killed her." Mary replied coldly but honestly and for the first time she looked over at the detective and he seemed to have a good face and he had killed one of the people behind her father's murder, so maybe she could trust him.

This reply seemed to shock Ryan, Mary didn't look like the kind of cold blooded kid who could rejoice in death of another person, then again he didn't really know her, maybe this was normal for her. All he did know was that he didn't like it. Still he couldn't think of anything else he had a right to say given that he was the reason for her condition, so he just corrected her on one point. "She's not dead, I just shot her and she could pull through."

"Well thank you for doing that." Mary responded and her eyes had were dead and cold, like those of a fish gasping for air, all life seemed to have gone out of them. This unnerved Ryan but he couldn't think of a thing he could say that would change the way the girl felt. She was too young to have her heart filled with such hate but all he could do in that terrible moment was listen to her continue and hope that she was just venting and her feelings would change over time. "I wish I were a cop so I could hunt them all down, everyone involved in this needs to die."

Ryan sighed, truth be told he felt the same way, he would not feel safe with Bracken and his people behind bars where they could make deals or break out, he wanted them dead too. He wanted to open up the morning paper and read about them bleeding out painfully in the streets, but he knew those thoughts were wrong and he had to control them. It was not a police officer's job to kill all of those he or she saw as a danger so he remained quiet and instead tried to focus his attention on what was going on in the kitchen. This distracted him for a moment but then a fresh wave of guilt washed over him, if he had broken this fresh faced kid sitting next to him then he had to find a way to make it right. He had no idea how he was going to do that but from that moment on all of his attention would be focused on finding some way to fix Mary Cauldwell before her hate destroyed her.

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The apartment building Detective Esposito pulled her car up in front of looked just a little too nice to belong to a college kid. There was little doubt in Esposito's mind that Clancy Simmons' brother Vulcan's drug money had paid for it. There was bound to be at least a security camera if not a door man at the entrance so Esposito knew he would need some sort of pretext for entering the building, he couldn't just barge in. Still the man he was looking to talk to was on parole so that gave him something to work with. He was trying to decide what story to use when as luck would have it he thought he spotted his prey. The kid who was walking out of the large double glass doors had a lap top case slung over his shoulder and looked like a decade younger slightly taller version of his brother. He seemed to be making his way to the street corner to hail a cab, Esposito jogged up quickly to intercept him.

"Clancy Simmons?" Esposito called out.

"Who wants to know?" The other man demanded defensively, he clearly liked to think of himself as someone who knew how to handle himself but there was something in his eyes that told Esposito this wasn't true. He had seen his type many times before, the pretenders. Those who grew up in a bad situation and thought that was enough to make them tough but in reality they would break when pushed and would often be left holding the bag for the real tough guys. Esposito decided on a strategy and moved forward with it.

"Detective Esposito, NYPD." Esposito replied holding out his badge for Clancy to see, he took a firm controlled posture, he needed this kid to understand that he was in control of everything that was happening here and that he could wreck both his and his brother's lives if he so chose.

"Anything you have to say to me you can say to either my parole officer or my lawyer." Clancy replied dismissively and he moved to get into a cab that had pulled up.

Epsosito quickly stepped between Clancy and the cab flashed his badge to the driver and nodded for him to drive on, the cab pulled away a second latter. "This isn't about you, this is about your brother Vulcan." He explained.

"Shit, you think I am going to give you something you can use against him? You are crazy." Clancy shook his head with a sigh.

"I am not trying to build a case against your brother, I am trying to help him."Esposito stated and every time Clancy tried to step away from him Esposito stepped twice as fast not letting the younger man break eye contact with him.

"Yeah, you cops are always trying to help us Simmons boys." Clancy said with a sarcastic shake of his head.

"It's the truth." Epsosito stated firmly. "Your brother is involved with some dangerous people and when they are done with him they are going to kill him."

"Thanks for looking out for him, but my brother can take care of himself." Clancy said once again trying to walk away.

"Can he protect himself from people who set off car bombs in the streets and take out FBI agents and the head of the Tongs?" Esposito asked and this seemed to get Clancy's attention and he stopped and turned to look at the detective. "Because that is who he is involved with, and he is taking credit for their crimes."

"What do you care, you are just another cop?" Clancy asked and it was clear he was trying to sound tough but his armor was cracking.

"I care because I am after the real people who committed those crimes. I care because right now your brother has both the FBI and the Tongs after his head and the people he is covering for will need to kill him once he is in prison, it's the only way they can be sure he will not talk." Esposito explained gravely .

"Why come to me?" Clancy asked, he was starting to break.

"Because I think the only reason he is doing this is to protect you." Esposito replied pointedly and that did it. Clancy looked down at the ground for a moment and then looked up at the detective.

"A few hours ago some guys in masks grabbed me." This confession surprised Esposito but he didn't let it show on his face, he needed this kid to believe he was in control. "It made no sense, they blindfolded me, took me to a warehouse, had me say a few words into a phone to Vulcan, and then dumped me back here." Esposito nodded that he understood. "Is that about when he started covering for these guys?"

"Yeah, he was helping us and then he changed his story." Esposito explained and then added. "If anything happens to him it will be because of you."

"You know he was the only one who looked out for me when we were kids. I had this breathing problem so I couldn't run with the gangs and where we grew up if you didn't run with the gangs you were dead."

"He protected you." Esposito stated.

"Yeah." Clancy nodded in reply. "I never knew my mother and my father didn't care for me but Vulcan was always there for me. The one time I tried to help him with his business I got caught and he got me out of it. Here I was about to skip town and leave him holding the bag again." There was shame in Clancy's voice as he made the last statement and Esposito saw his opening.

"Well now is your chance to protect him." Epsosito said, faking his understanding. In reality he was sure this kid knew all about his brother's violent life and was fine with living off of the profits of it, but moral outrage would get him nowhere at that moment so he used what would, understanding. It was a good thing detectives were trained to be good actors or some of the disdain he felt for the boy standing in front of him would have shown on his face, instead all the kid could see was understanding and willingness to help.

"How do I know you are telling the truth?" Clancy asked. A life time of not trusting cops didn't go away in the blink of an eye.

"He came to us for protection." Esposito admitted completely honestly. This seemed to draw a look that could only be described as a mixture of shock and confusion from Clancy so Esposito continued. "He was going to tell us everything and then his lawyer showed up and he started taking the blame for everything once she had talked to him."

"Wait a minute she?" Clancy asked and there was a look of alarm on his face.

"Yes she, is there something wrong with that." Esposito pressed clearly there was more going on here then met the eye.

"Did she have a Russian accent?" Clancy asked and there was an edge of panic to his voice.

Esposito had no idea what was causing this but he decided to press his advantage. "I think she did." The detective lied, in truth he had not spoken to her. "If your brother is in some kind of danger or that wasn't his lawyer I need to know now." He pressed as he stepped into Clancy's personal space and would not let the younger man break eye contact with him.

"I don't know if she is really his lawyer." Clancy said carefully trying to break eye contact but the man in front of him would not allow him to do this. "All I do know is that he warned me about a woman he worked with who had a Russian accent and told me that if I ever saw her no matter what she said I was to run. I think she is the only person who my brother has ever been afraid of."

"This changes everything." Esposito said urgently after giving the matter less then a second of thought. He then grabbed onto the arm of the younger man and began pulling him down the street.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing?!" Clancy demanded trying to break free of Esposito's grasp. This caused the detective to spin around and face him with a stern look in his eyes.

"I am taking you back to my precinct, if what you have told me is true every minute counts if we are going to save your brother." Clancy still didn't seem completely convince so then Esposito added. "If you want to leave your brother to die that is fine, but I need him alive."

This seemed to convince the young man and he stopped fighting and Esposito released his grip on the young man's right arm.

"Okay, I still don't trust you, but I have to save Vulcan." Clancy said a moment latter and Esposito could tell working with a cop stuck in his craw so he decided not to press the matter. Instead he simply led the way down the street to where his car was parked.

He knew on the way he would need to contact Beckett, if a fake Lawyer had gotten past security and into the precinct that meant he didn't know who he could trust there and with Ryan out of action Beckett and him would have to handle any threats to Simmons themselves. He only hoped that given everything that was going on she was up to it, because one thing was for sure in the next few hours things were about to get very real and the outcome of this case would most likely be decided in the next few hours and there was a very good chance that the final confrontation would leave someone dead. The army had trained him to accept this but it didn't make it any easier to think about. He just hoped the few people who were on his side would be ready for a hard fight.

**I really hope this chapter was worth it. There were a large number of reasons I was not able to write fan fiction, ranging from power losses at home, to my working on my novels the first of which I hope to have on the Kindle by Christmas. There was also the fact that ever with my meds whenever I make a huge change to my life it takes me a while to get used to it and get the new thing I am doing balanced with everything else in my life. In my case without my meds I was unable to finish the last year of highschool. Now after more then a year with the same shrink I am at the point where I can do that, so I am working on my last year of highschool even though I just turned 30. I didn't want to give up on that, I have been working hard and that threw me out of whack for a few weeks. I am really sorry since you guys have supported me every step of the way despite my problems and this story has picked up some new fans even when I was out of it.**

**My goal is to post a new chapter every day or every other day until it is finished and I don't intend to let you down as I have in the past.**

**Thank you all for hanging in there and remember I find negative reviews very helpful and even if I don't I agree it still helps me see the story the way some readers are and helps me improve as a writer so even if all you have to say is negative I am still grateful for your reviews or PMs.**

**Thanks again for hanging in there and for all of your support with this story and I hope the final few chapters will be worth the wait.**

**Thanks once again to Caskettfan5 for help with proof reading and notes on this chapter.**


	52. Chapter 49

**CHAPTER 49**

The disgusting mixture of gray dirt, dust, and chicken manure that Alexis Castle was forced to keep her head down in smelled awful. The smell was a mixture between an outhouse and a barn that had not been cleaned for some time. What was more the summer heat had drained the repellent mixture of every last drop of moisture, so every time she breathed in she got a nose full of it. The situation was enough to make her want to run to the nearest bathroom and vomit and then take a dozen showers just so she would feel clean again. Only one thing kept her from obeying this instinct, fear.

Fear for her life and the lives of the two older people with her, who she could not see at the moment but knew must be near by, kept her lying face down in the cornfield trying her best not to breath or move. The tall stalks of corn which so far had been her best defense also trapped the teenage girl. The corn was packed so closely together that any move she made would move the corn and give away her position to the unknown number of heavily armed thugs who were searching for her and the people with her. She hated having to stay still and she hated having to lay chest down in the dirt with her head to to one side. It was not comfortable but she had thrown herself down quickly in the heat of the moment and now that she was down she did not dare turn over. At the same time she wished she could pull the ground, as smelly as it was, up over herself so she would never be seen by human eyes again. She felt she was living in a nightmare and she wished beyond anything just to wake up.

She had lost the ability to think a long time ago, at that moment she was running on pure instinct and emotion. Her life before this moment seemed such a long way away and in many ways it felt like a dream. Things like grades, boyfriends, movies, and clothes seemed unreal to her at that moment. They seemed like they belonged to a world of pure fantasy and the fact that she had ever once worried about such trivial things felt impossible to believe. At that moment all that mattered to her was simple survival, fight or flight, kill or be killed. Her mind had been sent thousands of years back in time and she was only operating on the most primitive level. She knew she had no chance in winning a fight against her hunters, and she knew she stood very little chance of outrunning them, and so like the prey she was at that moment she did the only thing she could do and lay on the ground trying to control her breathing, hoping not to be found.

Suddenly she heard a sound that triggered something in her and pulled her out of her fear but only for a moment. It was a sound she knew from back when she was a member of the human race and not an animal in hiding. Her brain started to work as she tried to place the sounds, she had no idea how long it took her but at last she recalled what they were and why they gave her hope. The sounds were police sirens, She was saved! Then she remembered with what ease the men hunting her had taken out the better trained FBI agents and broken into the safe house, and the hope which had been rising from the pit of her stomach into her throat and had almost caused her to call out for her Grandmother and Mr. Beckett sank once again. Her instincts for survival took over once again and she kept her mouth shut and continued to breath in the foul smelling mixture that surrounded her face and now made up her world. He muscles were sore and crying out in pain from remaining in one position for so long, they wanted to twitch but her brain focused all of it's will on keeping them still. Pain had joined the smell in compelling her to jump up and move, but her fear and instincts kept that in check for the moment and she remained on the ground as one dead.

Still despite all of this her will was not completely used up and she tried to force her brain to focus on the noise that was all around her. This noise was her only link to the outside world and her only clue to if it would ever be safe for her to move again. The fear made her brain almost shut down, but her will kept her brain functioning just enough to focus on the noise. With one ear to the ground and one in the humid air exposed to the scorching summer sun, that she was sure was burning one side of her face, she listened for any clue to how much danger she was in.

She could hear footsteps getting closer, they sounded heavy and as if they had boots on them, they crunched in the dirt and loudly pushed the corn aside. She had no way of telling if they were friendly or not but a combination of recent experience and instinct told her that it was safest to assume whoever they belonged to was one of her hunters and not her savior, so she remained still ant silent.

Next she heard what sounded like raised voices. Alexis strained to make out what was being said but between her mind being clouded with fear and the fact that they were yelling, she could not make out exactly what was being said. Still she dimly became aware that at least one of the voices was coming over some sort of or loudspeakers, somewhere in the back of her mind she found the information that this voice most likely belonged to the police who were here to save her.

A moment latter all she could hear was thunder and explosions. The noise was deafening, and set her ears ringing. Her brain told her that these sounds must be gunshots, but at that moment she didn't care what they were, she just wanted them to stop. Her ears now became next to useless, and a throbbing pain in her head now joined the pain in her limbs compelling her to run away. Against all her will and reason she found herself screaming as loud as she could. So much air was forced out of her lungs so quickly that it was painful. She could not hear her own voice over the sounds that now made up her world, the only clue she had to the fact that she was screaming was that her mouth was hanging open. She tried to gain control of herself and become quiet again and it seemed to be working when something happened that caused her last nerve to snap, and to start screaming all over again.

A large male body hit the ground hard right beside her. From the ski mask the man was wearing Alexis could tell it was one of the men who was hunting for her. She next became aware of a wound in the man's stomach from which blood was pouring out like water from a broken fountain. She saw the man clutch at his stomach with his left hand trying to stop the flow of blood and his eye clenched shut in pain, but only for a moment. She then saw that in his right hand he held some sort of pistol. A look of surprise seemed to show in the man's eyes, followed by an evil smile.

The man stood up quickly and for a split second Alexis wondered if he had been too stunned or in too much pain to see her, a moment later that hope was quickly dashed. She felt a sharp pain as something grabbed on to her long red hair and dragged her up into a standing position, it was the man's strong, blood covered hand. She cried out in pain but the man didn't seem to pay any attention to this. Instead he pulled her on her unsteady feet in front of his chest and then wrapped his left arm around her torso. The man held her hard against his chest so she could not get away and she became aware of his blood seeping through and staining her shirt. She started to struggle, to try and get away but that was when she felt cold metal press against her temple, she knew this must be his gun so she stopped moving at once.

No words were exchanged but everyone seemed to understand what was going on at that instant. Alexis was now a hostage. The gunfire and yelling stopped and Alexis tried to take in her surroundings but she wasn't given much of a chance before the man was forcing her to shuffle with him slowly towards to the edge of the cornfield. All she could make out were a variety of police cars with flashing lights and other forms of transportation that did not have any markings. Out of the corner of her eye she thought she saw her grandmother surrounded by several men in uniform. If she could trust her mind and her addled brain then at least she knew that her grandmother was safe. Still she didn't have time to confirm this before man was dragging her around the front of an older pick up truck that was parked at the edge of the cornfield and pushing her in through the driver's side door.

Alexis used this chance to try and escape but the cruel man was ahead of her and just as he got in he switched which hand he was holding the gun in and grabbed Alexis' left wrist with his right hand, he then gave it a painful twist so she would get the message that running was pointless. He then forced her to sit in the seat beside his, then he reach over with his left foot and slammed the driver side door shut. He then turned the key which was already in the ignition, and the truck took off, kicking up a massive cloud of dust as he pulled out of the field and onto the paved road.

Alexis was scared but she forced her mind to focus on what was going on around her instead of shutting down. The man was still holding onto her wrist hard, but now his attention was devided between her and driving the truck, while police cars followed behind. His wound was also still leaking blood. He was about twice her size, but Alexis knew this gave her a chance. Still he had a gun and the truck was moving too fast for her to safely jump out of it, even if she could get free of his grasp. That was when her attention was drawn to the windshield and the view ahead.

Alexis had never been so grateful to see the flashing lights of police cars in her life. There were two rows of them dead ahead blocking off the small country road. In front of the cars was what she assumed was a spike strip, she had never seen one before but she had seen Cops and it was the only logical thing that could be in front of the cars. Behind the cars were more police officers in bullet proof vests then she could count in such a short period, all of them had weapons trained on the truck.

To Alexis' relief the truck began to slow and as it did so the man did something she didn't expect, he dropped his gun into his lap for just a second and grabbed the teenage girl with both arms and forced her into his lap. Alexis struggled and tried to break free yet again but once again she found he was too strong. She then felt the pistol pressed to her temple once again.

A chill ran down Alexis' spine as her mind began to work and started to come up with possible outcomes. It was clear this man intended to use her as a hostage and get past the road block, at that point she assume she would just slow his get away down and he would shoot her and dump her body on the side of the road. The other possibility seemed just as grim, he could be one of those hardened thugs that she saw on the news from time to time who would refuse to be taken alive and would shoot it out with the police. If that happened chances were he would either shoot her before he died or she would get hit in the cross fire.

As the truck continued to slow and draw closer to the roadblock Alexis desperately searched for anything she could do, but the man's arm was holding her firmly in place. The only thing part of her body she could really move was her lower legs and her feet. That was when an idea flashed through her mind and she was acting on it before she could really finish thinking about it. It was a huge risk but it gave her chance and Alexis had reached the point where she didn't care about the outcome of her actions so much as she did about doing something to take back some form of control of her own life.

She jammed both of her feet down on the gas peddle and the truck leaped forward. This seemed to shock the man because his grip on Alexis weakened and he dropped the gun and grabbed hold of the steering wheel. This allowed the teenager to struggle out of his grasp and she had made her way into the passenger side when the truck started to slow, but it was too late. The last thing Alexis heard before her head hit the dashboard was the man's deep gruff voice explain "Oh, Shit!" followed the loud popping sound of the tires going over the spike strip and the truck lurching out of control, this was then followed the sickening screech of metal against metal as the truck impacted against the side the police cars that made up the road block. Alexis felt a sharp pain as her head hit the dashboard sideways and then her world went black.

**Well I hope you liked this chapter. Sorry it didn't advance the plot much but I felt like it was time for an action chapter. Action is still the hardest thing for me to write so all feedback will be very helpful. I know I have said it before but I find even negative feedback helpful so if that is what you have don't be afraid to post it, I will not take it personally.**

**I know I have said this before too but you guys are the best. Thank you to everyone who has cared enough to stick with this story, follow it, or submit feedback. You guys have helped keep my spirits up in some very depressing times given me a reason to keep up with my hobby when I would normally be too depressed and tired to bother. Thanks a bunch.**

**H****ope you enjoyed this chapter and see you next time:)**


	53. Chapter 50

**CHAPTER 50**

In the New York apartment of Micheal Cauldwell, Richard Castle could hear the gun fire through the speakers of his cellphone. Despite the fact that he could not speak to her, he had never ended the call with his daughter and had been listening intently for any signs that she was alright. The gunfire and the lack of response when he yelled her name repeatedly into the phone seemed to confirm his worst fears. The whole apartment went quiet as everyone waited for some sort of news on the out come of events in the Maryland Cornfield.

Even Mary Cauldwell who didn't know anyone involved personally and had more than enough problems of her own to deal with waited on the living room couch with bated breath. After a couple of minutes had passed with nothing happening other than the gunfire seeming to stop, the tension became almost unbearable, but still no one dared make a sound.

Ryan who was also seated in the living room was torn. On the one hand he really wanted to join the others in the kitchen, it didn't make a whole lot of sense but somehow being there would make him feel closer to the action. On the other hand he knew the girl seated beside him shouldn't be left alone, even if he would only be a few yards away. So far the stubborn young woman had not let him help her, and she was in fact being careful to stay as far away from him as she could while still sitting on the same couch. Still she had been through a massive trauma and lost the only family she had in the world and Ryan suspected that the full impact of the event had yet to hit her. She was trying to be strong so strangers wouldn't worry about her and leave her alone. She seemed to be using revenge as some kind of shield to keep herself from feeling all the pain that came from being completely alone in the world. He had no idea how to get through to her, he had dealt with his sister's kids in the past but they were much younger and had not been through anything like this. He didn't think he was the right man for this job, still he owed it to Cauldwell and he had promised his partner that he would make sure Mary Cauldwell was okay. Maybe later he could ask Beckett for some pointers, assuming they had not just heard her father being murdered in some god forsaken cornfield.

It was then that he happened to glance over at the subject of his thoughts and noticed that the teenage girl had her head bowed and clasped in her hands. "What are you doing?" He whispered, trying not to break the silence.

"I'm praying. I happen to be Catholic." The girl whispered back, shooting the Irish detective a glance and she sounded somewhat annoyed by the interruption.

"Yeah, I guess now would be the time." Ryan admitted with a depressed shrug and Mary returned her head to her hands without another word.

Ryan thought about using their shared faith as an opening to get the girl to open up but in the end it seemed pointless. The moment just didn't seem right and if praying made the girl feel useful and helped keep her calm who was he to judge. He still wanted to join his friends in the kitchen but he decided that anything that would make Mary Cauldwell feel even more alone then she already was would be counterproductive, so he stayed put and like everyone else waited for news.

Kate Beckett stood beside Castle's wheelchair gripping his right hand in her left so hard her knuckles were turning white, but the writer did not complain. They were both gazing intently at the writer's phone which was sitting on the kitchen counter. They watched as the phone's display ticked off every painful second the call went on. Somehow this was even worse then watching the timer on the dirty bomb tick down, at least in that case it had turned out there was something they could do about the situation. Here all they could do was listen and wait for the worst to come to pass. Suddenly they heard what sounded like a male voice on the other end, but before Castle or Beckett could say anything there was a the sound of the phone being passed to someone else.

"Hello, is anyone on this line? This is Lt. Grant of the Maryland State police. If anyone is on this line answer." The voice was deep and male and had the unmistakable tone of command to it.

Before anyone else could say something Castle just blurted out everything that was on his mind. "This is Richard Castle, is my Daughter alright, what about my mother? What just happened?"

"Okay, slow down." Grant instructed, his voice remained calm. "I take it you are the father of the teenage girl we found here?"

"Yes, she stole one of her kidnappers phones to call me. Is she okay?" Castle asked and there was growing panic in his voice.

"She is alive." Grant answered but Castle could tell he was hiding something, Before he could stop panicking Beckett decided to step in she had questions she wanted answered too but she knew it would be more productive if they were answered in some sort of orderly manner.

"This is Detective Kate Beckett of the NYPD, can you give me a run down of the situation there?" Beckett asked, forcing herself to remain calm.

"Sure." Grant replied taking in a breath and then he continued. "When my team arrived at the scene there were half a dozen hostiles armed with military grade weapons searching the cornfield. We set up roadblocks on both ends of the road and then attempted to open up a dialog with the suspects. They then preceded to fire on my team and three members of my team were wounded in the exchange of fire."

"Are they alright?" Beckett asked, the most important thing to her at that moment was finding out if her father was alive but she was still concerned for the officers who had tried to save him.

"The paramedics are looking at them now and we will know more in a few minutes." Grant answered, but he didn't sound too hopeful.

"What about my daughter?" Castle demanded, his face turning red.

"I am getting to that." Grant replied trying to calm the father on the other end of the phone. "During the exchange of fire four suspects were brought down, we now know that three of them were D.O.A. We also came across what seemed to be two hostages in hiding, laying down in the cornfield. One was older woman who appears to be more or less unharmed the other was an elderly man who seems to have taken a pretty bad beating."

"That's my father, is he going to be alright?" Beckett asked just barely keeping the panic out of her voice.

"He will need some stiches, but the paramedics say he will be fine." Grant reported and Beckett let out a sigh or relief and her grip on Castle's hand loosened.

"What happened to my daughter?" Castle demanded again. He was grateful that his mother was alright but he didn't like the way Grant kept dancing around the subject of Alexis.

"That is more complicated." Grant replied carefully. The forth suspect that went down got back up and when he did he was using your daughter as a human shield." Castle felt his heart jump into his throat and then his mouth went dry, he couldn't find any words so after a moment Grant continued. "He then forced your daughter into a pick up truck and attempted to run our roadblock. He went over the spike stripe and then rammed two of our cars before being brought to a halt."

"What happened to my daughter?" Castle asked weakly, he had finally found his voice.

"You need to understand it was a very bad wreck and she was not wearing a seat belt Mr. Castle."

"Cut the bullshit and just tell me what happened!" Castle yelled into the phone.

"She has head trauma, she seems to have hit the dash board with the side of her head. The suspect died a few minutes ago." Grant reported and his tone was gentle while at the same time remaining firm.

Castle's face went white and tears began streaming down his face. He couldn't bring himself to speak so Beckett asked the question that was on everyone's mind. "How bad is she?"

"The paramedics didn't want to give her odds here but they are treating her and we have called for an air lift to John Hopskin's, it's the best hospital in the area for treating these types of cases." Grant reported gravely.

"Can I talk to her?" Castle managed to get out between sobs.

"I am sorry but she has not woken up yet." Grant replied sadly but then added on a more personal note. "You should know her pulse and other vitals are good so there is hope, it's just I was told we can't say how bad the damage is here."

"You said she is being taken to John Hopskin's?" Castle asked with a sniff trying to get himself under control and focus on what had to be done.

"Yes." Grant replied simply.

"Okay, I will be down there as soon as I can." Castle replied.

It was then that a thought crossed Beckett's mind, she hated to bring it up at a time like this but it had to be dealt with. "You said there were half a dozen suspects but you only accounted for four or them, what happened to the other two?"

"They evaded us in the cornfield." Grant replied with a sigh and then added. "We have helicopters and dogs joining the search for them, they will not get far."

"Okay, thank you for all you have done." Beckett said after taking a minute to think about everything Grant had told her. She had a few other questions to ask but that was when she noticed that Castle was no longer beside her. She turned and spotted him heading out of the apartment door. She caught up with him half way down the hall as he was making his way to the elevator. "Castle, wait!" She called out.

The writer turned his chair around slowly, to face her with her tear stained bloodshot eyes. "What?" He asked brokenly.

Beckett took a cautious step towards him and spoke gently. She knew what she had to say would not be welcome but it had to be said. "You know if you go to see Alexis Bracken's people will be waiting for you there."

"I know." Castle said grimly, not looking up at the detective. "But I have to be there when she wakes up and if she doesn't..." The writer couldn't bring himself to finish the thought.

"But Bracken's men will kill you if they catch you." Beckett pleaded as she stooped down to look him in the eyes but he refused to let her.

"I can't leave her alone down there." Castle said and there was grim determination in his voice.

"I can't do this without you." Beckett pleaded using the last piece of ammo she had. She knew it wasn't fair and she knew that when it came to a choice between his daughter and her that there was no choice, but her heart was breaking and she had to at least try.

I'm sorry." Was all Castle could say.

"You know Alexis wouldn't want you to walk into a trap, what is she supposed to do if she wakes up and you are gone?" Beckett demanded.

"If that happens." Castle said taking in a breath and for the first time he looked up at the detective. "Then I know you will take good care of her." This brought tears to Beckett's eyes. "But I am not going before I take some steps to protect myself." Castle added and there seemed to be a new firmness in his voice that had not been there a second ago.

"What steps?" Beckett asked confused.

"No one gets away with doing this to my daughter, I am going to expose Bracken." Castle said and his face changed from sad to angry.

"But we don't have any proof yet, it would just be your word against his and it will not stop his people from coming after you." Beckett objected, she was shocked by the latest move and couldn't see what it would get them besides making them look crazy.

"Maybe not but it will put the truth out there and it should make it harder for him to operate and who knows maybe the public outrage will get him tossed out of the senate." Castle said and his tone made it clear there was no point in arguing with him. Still the look Beckett gave him told him she didn't think that out come was likely. "At any rate I am done playing games and I am going to hit him back. I don't care who gets him, our side, the mob, or some relative of someone who he has killed, I just want him dead and out of the way. I am tired of this nightmare." Castle said through clenched teeth and in that instant he seemed to become another person, one Beckett barely knew bit she could not blame him for his feelings. She had been battling those same feelings for her whole adult life. All she could do was watch at he turned and made his way to the elevator.

Beckett was about to follow the writer when her phone began to ring. She looked at the screen and saw from the caller ID that it was Esposito. "Now what?" She mumbled to herself before answering the phone.

**Well there is chapter 50, I hope you liked it.**

**As always you guys are the best.**

**Thanks a bunch to Caskettfan5 for catching my many typos on this chapter. **

**Also sorry about the wait between new chapters, but I am working hard at finishing high school at the moment and I am sorry I am having trouble keeping up with both this story and my work with that. Still new chapters are coming this week, I just wanted to get the past chapters fixed first. Don't worry the story is not being dragged out and we are in the last act, it is just taking me a while to find time to write it. Thanks for sticking with me.**

**One thing anyone here can do to help is tell me one thing that I can't find an answer to online. If you know if Gates' husband's first name or how many kids she has, has ever been mentioned on the show could you put that information in a review or PM me? Sorry but I don't have time right now to watch all of the Gates episodes to find out myself and I can't find an answer with google.**

**Thanks again for all of your help and sticking with me, you guys are the best.**


	54. Chapter 51

**CHAPTER 51**

It took Beckett only a matter of moments to be updated over the phone by Esposito on the latest bad news. She took it all in but in reality what she really cared about was ending the call as quickly as possible. She didn't like the note Castle had departed on and she desperately wanted to catch up with the writer and make sure things were alright between them before he left for Maryland. Part of her wanted to go with him, but the sensible part of her brain told her that she would be of more use in New York building a case against Bracken.

Finally after what seemed like hours the short phone call ended. Beckett was left looking down at her phone and debating with herself if she should just call Castle or try to chase him down in person. On the one hand if she called him she was sure to get a hold of him right away. On the other she really wanted to have the conversation that was going to take place in person. She wanted to be able to look into his eyes and she wanted him to be able to see into hers so he could see she was not mad at him. How could she be? All he was doing was being a father and right now he was in the worst place he could be, he didn't even know if his daughter was going to be alive at the end of the day. That thought hit Beckett right in the gut, it was like she had been punched by a heavy weight boxer and drank a gallon of ice water on the coldest day of the year all at the same time. She wanted to just curl up on the floor and cry, if there was anything worse then losing her own mother to this monster, it was the thought of such a beautiful young girl with so much to give, whose life had barely begun being taken away. Alexis wasn't even her daughter and she understood Castle's rage and his need to strike back. She couldn't even begin to imagine what he was going through but at that moment she thought she understood her father just a little better. He wasn't a cop and there was nothing he could do to protect her or fight back, it wasn't just the lose of her mother that had driven him to drink.

Still she knew none of these gloomy thoughts would help her in the least. The only thing that would help would be building a real case against Bracken. That way if the worst did come to pass at least her mother and Alexis would be avenged and no one else would ever be harmed by this heartless monster. To do that she needed her other half, even if it was just over the phone so she could run ideas past him while he waited in a hospital in Maryland. She wouldn't have even known who was behind all of this if it were not for him. She had put years of hard work into this case and pushed it forward when everyone else tried to block her and tell her she was crazy but somehow he completed her and they got places together that neither of them would have gotten alone. This brought a sad smile to her face. She may have blurted it out in way too public of a fashion and now that she thought about it she knew she was going to catch all kinds of hell not just from the tabloid press, but from the NYPD itself, but she had spoken what was truly in her heart, the thing she was afraid to admit to herself, when she had said that she loved him. She did love him and she couldn't see herself going through life with any other man by her side.

In that one moment everything became clear to her. She needed him, even if she lost the job she loved so much, she would get over it if she had him by her side. At the very least she knew this meant reduced assignments, no more under cover work now that her face would be on every magazine in the country. She would also catch flack from other cops. The world of the NYPD was still very much a man's world and she knew there would be jerks who would think she had slept her way to the top, never knowing that she had hated the man's guts when he first turn up in her life. That seemed like such a long time ago now and almost like it had happened to another person. She could not imagine hating him or not wanting him by her side every single day at this point. She didn't care what a bunch of jerks, be they cops or suspects trying to get a rise out of her thought. None of them knew her or him, or their history, so what those people thought didn't matter. She had never cared about what other people thought before, all she had ever cared about was the truth, so why should she care in this instance. She concluded that she didn't. As far as she was concerned Richard Castle was next to her father the best man she had ever known and she was lucky to have him in her life, she knew he loved her and now she didn't care who knew that she loved him. She refused to be ashamed of it and it was just one more reason she had to see him in person and make sure he knew that she understood what she was doing.

It was then that she heard a ding at the end of the hall, she looked up and it was the elevator doors opening. She next saw a welcome sight, it was her writer rolling towards her in his wheelchair. He looked a little upset as he approached her.

"Kate, I'm sorry." He began. "It seems like I keep making the same mistake over and over again. I am not picking Alexis over you but as her father I need to be there if the worst happens. I guess I am just not good at making those sorts of things clear."

"It's okay." Beckett whispered in a comforting tone. Rushing forward and hugging him. "I understand. You wouldn't be the man I love if you didn't go to her. I will hold down things here, we will be alright."

Castle pulled back and looked her in the eyes and in that moment Beckett didn't think she had ever seen such a look of pure love directed at her and it broke her, causing a tear to roll down her right cheek. "Thank you, so much. I don't think I say this enough but you are exactly what I need and I love you so much."

"I love you too." Beckett whispered kissing his cheek, this time the confession was just for them. "That is why I can't stand the thought of you walking." This got a chuckle from Castle and despite everything it brought a smile to Beckett's lips as she continued. "Or rolling into danger, but I understand why you have to."

"Just so you know I will not be going in unprepared." Castle replied trying to reassure her while bringing his arms up and hugging her face tightly against his left cheek. "The security team I hired will be at the hospital and I hired another one who uses armored limos normally reserved for VIPs to take me down there."

"How did you manage that?" Beckett asked with a sniff. Sometimes the way this wonderful man's mind worked seemed straight out of fiction but at this moment she was glad his mind went places hers didn't.

"I know people." Was the only reply she got, and there it was even in a situation like this, the Castle ego. Still she loved it, god help her she loved it. In that moment she broke the hug so she could kiss him full on the mouth. It was a long deep kiss and all of the pent up emotions of the past few days seemed to be expressed in it. It wasn't until they both needed air that they broke apart.

"Still be careful, I don't want anything to happen to you." Beckett whispered as she pulled away.

"You do the same." Castle whispered and then added. "I am so sorry but I need to go, I just got a text and my ride is waiting." Beckett nodded that she understood and it was then that a guilty look passed over Castle's face and this puzzled her.

"Castle, what is it?" She asked.

"I know you said you think we should wait to expose him until we have a real case against Bracken, and now I think you were right." Castle said quietly and at that moment he looked like a little boy that had been caught taking change from his mother's purse.

"I still think it will just make too much trouble and make our job harder." Beckett confirmed trying to refocus her attention on the case they had to solve.

"Yes, I know but I was so angry." Castle tried to explain.

"What did you do?" Beckett asked trying to keep all judgment out of her voice.

"While I was going down in the elevator I sent out some tweets accusing Bracken of being behind all this and trying to murder Alexis." Castle confessed and he looked up at the detective who had stood up as he spoke with a look of pure guilt in his eyes.

Beckett took a moment to take all of this in, she knew it would make her job harder and she would catch flak from both Gates and the FBI but at that moment she also found that in her heart of hearts she didn't care. He had lashed out and done something stupid in a moment of anger that was going to make her life harder, but she didn't care. All she cared about was about them and there little makeshift family being alright, that had to be what love was. She had never felt anything like it outside of the family she grew up with but she felt it at that moment. "It's okay, we will deal with it." She said firmly.

"I am so sorry, I didn't take your advice and this is going to put you in more danger." Castle continued but Beckett wouldn't let him take any more blame for what had happened. In truth he would not be in this position if Bracken wasn't such a monster so as far she she was concerned all of this was Bracken's fault not his. She bent down and kissed him once again so he would know beyond anything how she felt.

"It's okay, we are all angry and stressed out and I wanted to do the same thing." She whispered as she pulled away from the kiss.

"Thank you." Castle replied once again amazed at the depth of her love for him, he didn't know what he had done to earn it but even at a time like this it made him feel ten years younger and as if when all the chips were down he could still find a reason to go on with his life. He wanted some way to pay her back and then the thought struck him. "Once everything is settled and we have taken care of all of this I want you to pick a place, any place in the world were we can all go and stay quietly and recover and just be ourselves."

This shocked Beckett, not just the offer but the fact that the man who always seemed to believe everything would turn out alright was back, he didn't say if, he said when. She had never much been interested in living Richard Castle's lifestyle of the rich and famous, but at that moment she couldn't think of anything she would rather do then just go somewhere they could get used to being a family without any stress. "I think that sounds like a great idea." She answered with a smile.

"So you will think about it?" Castle asked.

"Yes I will." Beckett replied and this time it was Castle who pulled her into a kiss. He didn't have much leverage over her but she let him control the kiss, she knew he needed to show her how much he loved her at that moment. They were interrupted by a buzzing in Castle's front shirt pocket, it was his cellphone.

Castle pulled out his cellphone and looked at a test message. "That's the car service, I have to go." He said with a sadness in his eyes.

"Go take care of Alexis and I will take care of things here." Beckett said standing up.

"Love you." Castle said and then turned and headed for the elevator.

"I love you too." Beckett called after him and stood and watched him until the elevator doors closed. She then took a moment to compose herself and turned and headed back to the apartment. She shut her feelings away for the moment and went into Detective Beckett mode, she was going to solve this case and no one else was going to get hurt while she did it. She had more reason to go on with this case and live then she had ever had before. She had no idea what the "normal" life that lay ahead of her once this case was dealt with would be like, and in truth scared her a bit, but she was not about to let that bastard Bracken rob her of it. She was Detective Kate Beckett and she could handle anything as long as she had Castle beside her and at that moment despite the distance between them she felt closer to him them she ever had before. Gates couldn't stop her, The FBI couldn't stop her, all the hired assassins in the world couldn't stop her, She was going to be the one to bring Bracken down and she was going to do it today. This would be the last day that corrupt scumbag would get away with hurting anyone. The truth was out there thanks to Castle and she was going to prove it was the truth no matter what it took and then she was going to get on with her life. She wouldn't let a piece of scum like Bracken define her or hurt the ones she loved. She was going to win this fight.

**Sorry this chapter was so short and it didn't advance the plot. I was going to write something more action packed but the action packed chapter just didn't feel right so I deleted it and replaced it with this. Sorry if this messes up the pacing but this is what felt right and in character at this point in the story too me. Still I am not sure it was the right move so if you don't think it belonged here and you can explain why please leave feedback and let me know and I may make some changes. **

**As always you guys are the best, thanks for reading my humble scribblings and helping me become a better writer with your feedback.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for catching my many typos in this chapter.**

**Again sorry for the delay and if you know the name of Gates' husband or how many kids she has please let me know. You guys are great, thanks a bunch for all of your help.**


	55. Chapter 52

**CHAPTER 52**

When detective Kate Beckett reentered the apartment of the late Special Agent Cauldwell in order to update her captain on everything that was going on, the easy part was explaining what detective Esposito had told her over the phone. The hard part was talking her captain about the mistake her partner had made. As Beckett read Captain Gates in their short time working together, the older woman was the type who did not suffer fools gladly and expected the rules to be followed and in this case she did not disappoint. Beckett's new Captain was livid over this latest news, still she kept her voice down. If there was one thing that could be said about her it was that she was a professional and she kept herself under control while still making her displeasure at the turn of events more than clear. She pointed out that the first rule every cop learns and one of the wavers Castle had to sign when he started following Beckett was to never talk about an active case and yet here he had done just that, there was no excuse for that. Beckett could only nod her head and agree. Still once Gates had made it clear that she was not happy about any of this and that they would have to talk about it once the case was closed her tone seem to change.

"Okay so now our job is to get back to the precinct and build a case before either the Mayor or Bracken's lawyers shut us down. We may only have an hour or two so we have to move quickly people." Gates ordered the room in a strong commanding tone, she may not like the situation but she was going to keep control of it. That was her job after all, to keep control of the impossible.

Beckett, Ryan, and tech with the laptop were just starting to pack up and get ready to leave when they were interrupted by a small but angry voice and it was addressed to Captain Gates. "So you are telling me that Senator Bracken murdered my father and now he is going to get away with it because of who he is?" The voice of Mary Cauldwell demanded and all eyes in the room turned to the teenage girl whose face had turned bright red and was struggling to hold back her tears.

To everyone's surprise Gates' response was not a power play from on high, or an attempt to take control of the situation in such a way so that her subordinates would know she was in control and not to be challenged in such a way. Instead it was the response of a mother or other relative trying to comfort a child. She bent down on her knees looking the girl in the eyes and for the first time everyone present saw another side of the tough as nails Captain and she didn't seem to care. All of Gates' attention was focused on the sad, almost broken teenage girl standing in front of her. The girl didn't seem to know if she should give into rage or sorrow, so Gates made it easy for her by reaching over and wiping the tears from her eyes. Gates was so gentle that Mary didn't resist but she didn't back down either.

This was when Gates chose to speak, and it was clear from her tone what what she was saying was for Mary Cauldwell and no one else. "My name is Captain Gates but you can call me Vicky." The girl nodded that she understood and then Gates pressed on. "What you have heard is true. I will never lie to you, there may be things that I can't tell you but I will never lie to you. I promise."

"Okay, thank you." Mary said with a sniff and her face seemed to calm a little but she was still angry. "Still honestly this does mean that the monster who took my only family is going to get away with it because he is too powerful to take down."

"Yes, there is a chance of that." Gates admitted and this caused the girl to look away from her. It was clear she was trying to be an adult and understand and not take out her anger on the rest of the room. "But you should know that even if he does escape justice this time he can't evade it forever. There is no statute of limitation on murder so this charge can be brought back at any time in his life. He may think he is free of it twenty years from now, but I can still bring charges against him then and I will. I have spent my whole life bringing down corrupt cops because I have seen first hand what corruption does to this country, and I will not let him get away with this."

"I want to believe you, and I want to trust these people but I am so angry." Mary admitted and then in a surprise move she let Gates pull her into a hug and she finally let lose the tears. "How do I go on?" She asked brokenly.

"I wish I had a perfect answer." Gates replied honestly. "All I do know is that you can. And you can make your father proud by refusing to back down from monsters like Bracken." Gate then broke the embrace and then directed the teenage girl's attention to the tall good looking female detective standing off to their right. "You see her?" Gates asked and Mary nodded so Gates continued. "Her mother was murdered by Bracken and for more then ten years she had no leads but she still was able to become the best detective I have ever seen, despite what happened to her. She has saved countless lives and most people don't even know it, but she did it. She turned the worst moment of her life into something good that can help others."

"That's pretty amazing." Mary agreed and for the first time she really took in the detective standing across the room and saw someone she could admire. Still there was something about the woman who was still holding her that she had to admire too. She hated to admit it but Vicky reminded her of her own mother, there was a strength to her and she knew she wouldn't give up on what she believed to be right. This woman could never replace her own mother but at this moment it was comforting to have someone with her who at least reminded her of her own mother and to have an example of what she could become if she didn't let what Bracken did define her. She knew in her heart of hearts that meant letting go of the rage and the need for personal revenge but she wasn't quite ready to do that yet, so instead she let the brief glimmer of hope she had push it aside for the moment.

"What happens now?" Mary asked and while she had stopped crying her eyes were filled with fear.

"Well next I get my team back to our precinct and we try to nail the man behind your father's death in the time we have left." Gates stated in a firm businesslike manor. She was being honest but she also wanted to leave this girl with some hope.

"What about me?" Mary asked nervously as her eyes fixed on her head which fidgeting around in an uncontrolled manor. "I don't want to be alone and I don't want to go with social services." She admitting and deep down she know what she was asking for from a complete stranger, but she didn't have the guts to come right out and ask for it.

Gates took a deep breath, she could read between the lines and she knew shat this girl was asking and that it would violate some rules, still she was sure she could swing it and as a parent herself with two kids around this girl's age she didn't want to leave her on her own, not after the bond the girl had so clearly formed with her. "Well until we figure out what happened with social services I am not letting you out of my sight, so you will have to come back to the precinct with the rest of us. I think that will be the safest place for you." Gates said in a commanding tone as she stood up and then added more gently. "Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah, I think that is the only thing that would be okay with me right now." The teenage girl said looking up at the Captain and for the first time there was not a tear to be found in either of her eyes.

"Okay, good." Gates said with a soft smile and the she took the girl's right hand in her own and led her team out of the apartment.

As they all walked out of the door Mary Cauldwell turned to take one last look around the place that had been the sight of so much laughter and tears in her young life. Now it was swarming with strangers taking samples of everything but she could still make out the wall were her father had marked her height every time she grew an inch, she saw the kitchen where she had argued with him just the other day over if she was mature enough to go to a senior party, she could just barely make out the couch where her mother had insisted on reading her the Bible every night before she went to sleep, it was in broken English but somehow her mother always had a way of making it come alive, the last thing she saw was the fridge where both of her proud parents had always displayed hew latest drawing or good grade. As she was reluctantly pulled away from the only home she ever knew she had to wonder if she would ever see any of it again.

Vicky must have noticed this because she turned around and without looking at the girl whispered a promise that only she could hear. "It is all right, once it is safe we will come back."

That promise from the woman who said she would never lie to her was enough for Mary. She used her left arm to dry the tears from her eyes and then still holding on to Vicky's hand with her right, she took the point in leading the group down the hall she had walked a thousand times and towards the elevator. She didn't know what the future would hold but she was determined to make her mother and father proud and this wolf in sheep's clothing named Bracken would come to regret the day he had ever heard the name Cauldwell. Through her, the proud family name that stood for justice would continue. She new she was young but she felt she could trust the older woman taking along just half a pace behind her and she knew that no matter what she would be okay as long as she trusted Vicky.

She didn't know why this sudden sense of almost peace had come over her but she was grateful for it. Maybe it was Vicky's words, maybe it was the spirit of the Lord coming upon her in her moment of need, or maybe it was just God letting her know she could trust these people. All she did know what was her conflicting feelings seemed to be under control and it was not of her doing so she was grateful for who ever had helped her through this.

As they waited by the elevator for it to reach their floor Mary took another look at the woman Vicky had called Beckett. As she took her in she decided she could do a lot worse then to turn out like her. The woman was good looking, she had a boyfriend who clearly cared about her, and she seemed to have moved past the horrible events of her early life and was helping people. She watched her on the phone as she remained calm despite getting what was clearly bad news. Mary hoped it wasn't about the writer's daughter, she had prayed and she didn't want anyone to have to go through that type of pain.

Finally Beckett put her phone down and when she did there was a grave look on her face. Mary had been very young at the time but she remembered that look, it was the look adults had gotten on their faces when planes slammed into something called the world trade center. It was the same look Mr. Rodgers had on his face when he tried to explain to a young Mary Cauldwell just want had happened. Just like then the mood in the room became somber and Mary waited for the grown ups to talk.

"What is it, detective?" Gates asked taking control of the situation.

Beckett began her report and Mary was impressed by how professional she was able to keep her voice. "About fifteen minutes ago the FBI gave into the terrorist's demands and let them into the bank mainframe." Beckett reported on the hostage situation Mary knew nothing about, but it seemed to mean the world to the adults gathered around her.

"Damn It! There goes our money link to Bracken!" The detective named Ryan yelled as he slammed his fist into the closed elevator door.

"It's worse then that." Beckett said sadly and she took a breath to steady herself before continuing. "About a minute ago it seems all of the bombs in the bank went off and completely leveled the building. Firefighters and bomb squad are working to clear the area but so far it looks like no one survived.

This brought a deadly silence over the room for a few minute, only interrupted by the ding of the elevator opening. It was as they were all stepping in that Vicky spoke, and it was a tone that gave Mary a new found respect for the woman. It was a tone that said she understood the loss of life but it was also in control of the situation and knew what to do. In a way it reminded her of Captain Sisko on Deep Space nine, faced with an awful situation he would not back down but instead would work on the problem one piece at a time, and Mary was sure Vicky would do the exact some thing.

"Okay, people when we get back we will have a mass casualty event to deal with, that means working with Homeland and others at the scene to try and save who we can and gather what evidence there is will be our top priority." Everyone nodded that that understood still Mary could tell Beckett's feelings mirrored her own, she did not like putting Bracken on the back burner. Still she tried to understand, the people at the bank came first.

Beckett then spoke up and what she said gave Mary a new respect for the detective, she was clearly good at thinking on her feet. "Still this may give us another chance to get at Bracken."

"How so?" Ryan asked as the elevator lurched down towed the basement level parking.

"His deal only holds if he was able to call off the hostage situation without anyone being hurt, with the deal off and Esposito bringing in his brother we may have another chance to get what is really going on out of him." Beckett stated to the room and everyone seemed to take this in and agree. Beckett then turned her attention to her boss. "Sir I want another crack at him when we get back." Beckett knew she had blown it the last time she was in the room with the drug dealer so now her eyes were pleading.

Vicky seemed to consider this for a moment and the after looking down at the teenage girl who was still holding her hand, she made her choice. She had promised the girl that she would get Bracken and that meant that she had to send her best detective back in. "Alright, but Esposito will be in there with you at all times." She said firmly.

Beckett didn't like this but she nodded her agreement, it was the best deal she was going to get.

The elevator then dinged and the doors opened with a screech that told of a need for oil on their joints. The garage had never look so dark and foreboding to Mary because in her life and for a second her feet would not move into it. Maybe it was because this one step represented her step into a new life, one without any family, one where she was alone. She then felt a tug on her hand and looked up and saw she wasn't alone, it was Vicky.

"It will be okay." The older woman whispered and Mary believed her and so she followed her into the unknown darkness that was her future. She had no idea what lay ahead but she hoped that with a friend?, like Vicky by her side and her faith she could get though it. One thing was for sure, the life she had mapped out for herself was gone for good and something else had taken it's place. She didn't know if it would be better or worse, she just knew she had no choice but to face it. So she took one last step and felt herself enter her new life.

**Sorry this took so long, I have been busy and on friday I thought I had a heart attack but it turned out just too be a really bad panic attack. Also I tried out this chapter with Mary bonding with Beckett and Ryan before settling on Gates.**

**I don't know about the rest of you but Gates just felt right to me, we don't know all that much about her besides the fact that she has kids and can't stand corruption and despite the fact that this is Beckett's story it just felt more natural to put Gates with Mary. If you think otherwise I would love to hear why.**

**Also I am sorry the plot didn't advance in this chapter but once I started writing things from Mary's POV, I just couldn't stop and tacking it onto another chapter felt cheap.**

**One thing I am worried about is, do you think Gates telling Mary to call her Vicky went too far and was out of character? My logic is that is what Gates would have been called when she was a kid and she is trying to build a level of trust with this kid, but I don't know if it may rub some people the wrong way.**

**Well I hope you enjoyed this short chapter, such as it is. Thank you all for reading and leaving feedback.**

**You are all helping me become a better writer, so thanks a bunch.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for helping with typos and advice.**

**Sorry for the delay in new chapters and once again if it has been stated on the show what Gates' husbands' first name is and how many kids she has please let me know.**

**Thanks again for sticking with this story and being such a big help.**


	56. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53**

Senator William Bracken had locked himself away in the office of his New York city town house. Everyone from his family to those who worked for him knew better then to disturb him for any reason when that door was locked. Bracken's own private security knew better then to disturb him for anything less then world war three when he locked the door to that particular room.

Once he was inside his study he began the same tired ritual he had practiced for almost twenty years. He removed an unmarked device from his locked desk drawer and began a painstaking process of sweeping over every last inch of the room with it. The room was not large and he did his best to keep it free of clutter but still this task would take about half an hour to complete. He was informed that the palm sized plastic device in his hand came with a money back guarantee and he had faith in it as it had never let him down before. Still he assumed that if it ever did fail him, getting a few hundred dollars back from a company that had cheated him would be the least of his worries. It didn't matter how many hundreds of times he went through the motions, his heart always went to his throat every time he checked for listening devices of any kind, he knew what it would cost him and his family if the little red light on his device ever lit up. Still this time like all of the times before he all he saw were green lights and he let out a sigh of relief as he replaced the device in the drawer and sat down behind his large wooden desk and pulled out his cellphone that he kept for emergencies such as the one he had now.

A few moment's latter he was on the line with the man he always turned to in these situations, the only man he trusted with his secrets. Bracken didn't trust easily and in truth despite the years of trust that had grown up between himself and this man if he ever suspected him of endangering the plan, he would put him down himself. He considered Charles Taylor to be a friends despite the more then decade of age that separated them and the fact that they never met face to face, still too many people had died for this plan for Bracken to let anything, even friendship get in the way. Something good had to come from all of this and Bracken would not have the power to make anything good come from it until he was president so he would not let anything stand between himself and the highest office in the land.

Bracken didn't even let Taylor finish answering the phone before he spoke. "So what are we going to do about these tweets from the writer?" He demanded, he was clearly frightened for the first time in years. This was the first time his secret had ever been laid out for the world to see and he didn't like feeling exposed.

"Calm down, senator. It's not that big of a deal." The calm soothing voice said on the other end of the line, but it did little to reassure Bracken.

"Calm down?" Bracken asked with disbelief in his voice. "In a tweet that is even now being passed around the web one of the most famous writers in the world accuses me of trying to kill his family and being behind other deaths going back years and you say it is no big deal. This is exactly what we have spent so much time and money trying to avoid!" Bracken was yelling now, he didn't like it when people didn't share his concerns. He was a man used to getting his own way.

"Listen to me thanks to the explosion at the bank that I set off with the back up detonators I had installed, no one is paying attention to what some writer says on the internet." Taylor explained calmly.

"But they will and how do I respond then?" Bracken asked, normally he dealt with this types of situations a lot better but it was clear having his worst fears come to pass had shaken him so Taylor continued to calmly lay out the plan.

"You don't respond personally. Act as if it is not even worth your attention, Richard Castle is not known for being the most down to earth person in the world. I will leak stories about the times he has gone bigfoot and UFO hunting to our contracts in the press and with with his daughter in the hospital it will not be hard for people to believe his judgment is clouded."

Taylor couldn't see Bracken but he could tell from the sound of his breathing that he had calmed down and returned to sitting in his chair. When Bracken next spoke it was with the voice of the calm and controlled man of power who the nation needed at it's helm in these troubled times. "So I don't say anything directly but what do we do about these tweets that will keep getting passed around?"

"You quietly have your lawyers file a liable suit against Richard Castle, this will cause twitter to take down the tweets." Taylor instructed.

"Okay, that sounds fine but that will draw media attention to them." Bracken observed becoming more calm by the second, this was a game he could play and he felt a measure of control returning to his life.

"That is why you will help deflect media attention away from the insane ramblings of a father who is going through a trying time in his life and instead focus it on the tragic events that happened at the bank." Taylor explain.

"Okay." Bracken said and he was clearly a little uneasy with the number of deaths, so he decided to focus on something else. "You are sure all the banking records they were following are destroyed?"

"I was monitoring everything they did on the computers there, you are no longer linked to any of your past actions in a way that can be traced and everyone who knows your secret died in that explosion." Taylor assure the senator.

"Good, then all we have to worry about is Simmons and whatever that bitch Beckett has." Bracken said and at that moment he felt completely like his old self again.

"Right, and since Simmons has made a full confession that investigation should be coming to a close soon and no one would believe him if he changed his story."

"Just make sure that confession holds, I can't have this blowing up in my face." Bracken instructed firmly.

"Don't worry senator, I have the best person I can find putting pressure on him and he knows what will happen if he goes against us." Taylor said in a soothing tone and then added. "As for Beckett, she is about to be kicked off of the force and if tragic fire should happen to kill her in her apartment, you can't be blamed for the faulty wiring in her building."

"No, I can't. You have done a good job Taylor." Bracken said gratefully.

"I know I have." Taylor replied smugly. "The prize is in sight, we just have to keep our nerve a little longer." The line then went dead leaving Bracken to remove the battery from his cellphone and lock it away in his drawer. He was still a little uneasy about the fact that he had been named in public but he now at least felt like he could weather the storm. Soon it would be those who have placed all his carefully laid plans in danger who would have reason to worry. The cop and her little writer boy toy would not be a thorn in his side much longer. This game was all about whoever had the power and at that moment he was sure it was him. He may have lost one battle but he would win the war.

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The ancient, neglected television that hung in the air in the one corner of the detectives' bullpen of the 12th precinct blared away showing whatever happened to be broadcast on whatever random local station it happened to be tuned in to. Most of the time no one paid any attention to the noise of the pictures coming from it, it had been there so long that most people could not remember when it had been installed. Still like an old soldier refusing to leave his post it continued in it's mostly useless duties twenty-four hours a day seven days away, never stopping. No one may have cared enough to even dust it when the station was cleaned, but it just kept on doing it's job, refusing to give in to the ravages of time and just kept going. Things were quite different when Detective Esposito and Clancy Simmons made their way into the bullpen, all eyes were fixed on the TV.

Everyone, Even former Special Agent Sorrenson was gathered in a large group under the old plastic device, watching silently as the grim images played across the screen. No one was paying much attention to the sounds coming out of the TV. All those sounds consisted of were self important reporters repeating the same meaningless, cliched platitudes about how this was the worst attack on American soil since Nine Eleven, and how tragic this was.

No one in the room had to be told any of these things. The older members had responded to the first calls to come in from the twin towers, so they knew exactly what they were looking at and just how bad it was. Some of the younger members had joined either the NYPD or the Military and then from there moved to the NYPD, because of what happened on that fateful September day, they didn't need any reporters sitting safe in their studio to explain what they were seeing at what it meant.

Esposito fell into the later group and what was more on his tour of duty he had seen far worse. He had been in parts of the world where things like the bank bombing happened every day, and yet life went on. Still there was something about seeing it happen in his own home country and once again in the city he lived in that caused his eyes to become glued to the old TV once he noticed the crowd in the bullpen and made sense of what they were looking at. For a moment he completely forgot about the young man standing beside him, not that it mattered, Clancy Simmons was just as tranfixed by what was happening on the TV.

Esposito pulled his eyes away from the television after a minute or two and he noticed that he could not see Special Agent in Charge Peterson or any of his men in the room. This worried Esposito since the man was now no longer just an obstruction to the investigation, he was a suspect. What was more he was a suspect with power. Esposito had been trained to never lose sight of the enemy, that was the sort of thing that could get you killed in combat, so he made his way through the crowd to Sorrenson. Esposito knew that if anyone could tell him what had happened to Peterson it was the former FBI Special Agent.

"What happened to Peterson?" Esposito asked as he stepped up beside Sorrenson.

"What?" Sorrenson asked, startled, he clearly had not noticed Esposito walk up beside him.

"What happened to Peterson?" Esposito repeated the question.

"Oh, he and his men left in a hurry a few minutes before this hit the news." Sorrenson replied without taking his eyes off of the TV.

"These people are after my brother and me." Clancy Simmons whispered to Esposito and it shouldn't have surprised the detective that the young man's view of the situation was purely a self interested one given who his brother was, but the coldness of certain people that he met while doing his job could still surprise him from time to time. Still he knew an opening when he saw one and if anyone could get Vulcan to talk it was his brother, so Esposito decided to work with that instead of letting the young man's attitude bother him.

"Yeah they are and do you really think they are going to leave you two alone?" Esposito said turning to face the young man.

"No." Clancy replied with a shake of his head and then added a question after taking another look at the TV. "Can I talk to my brother now?"

"Sorry, not until his lawyer gets here." Esposito said with a shake of his head, pretending to care about Clancy's feelings. He had a feeling he would get farther by presenting himself as an ally then as just another faceless cops doing his job, even though that was what he was doing at the moment, detectives all had to have a bit of frustrated actor inside themselves in order to do their job.

"What are you talking about, my brother is in danger right now!" Clancy said rather loudly, this drew a few eyes away from the tv and towards the young man before Esposito lead him to another corner of the room to continue their conversation.

"Those are the rules, once he asked for his lawyer no one can see." Esposito explained quietly.

"Then what was the point of dragging me down here?" Clancy demanded as he threw his hands up in the air.

"We put a call into her and she will come down here and let him know you want to see him, as soon as she gives the okay you will be able to talk to him." Esposito explained remaining calm.

"Screw you and your rules, my brother told me to run if this woman ever showed up, I am out of here." Clancy said as he turned to leave but Esposito quickly stepped in front of him.

"It will not help you or your brother if the case gets thrown out of court, the only way you two are safe is if the guy behind this goes down." Esposito said quickly and this seemed to cause the young man to stop and reconsider his situation for a moment.

It was a whole thirty seconds latter before Clancy spoke again, Esposito waited him out. "How do you know she will not kill him, she has to work for this guy?" Clancy asked and he was a little more calm then before but still clearly upset.

Esposito knew that he could win over or lose Clancy with his next few words. This was a critical moment, the fish was on the hook, now Esposito had to carefully reel it in and hope the line didn't break. He could tell Clancy felt betrayed and lied to so he had to give him the impression that he at least was on his side. "Because no one will get into that room without being searched and I am going down to guard interrogation room two myself just to make sure there is no funny business. I am armed and former special forces, I have seen combat." This seemed to calm Clancy quite a bit, the fish was hanging in the air, now Esposito just had to get it on the boat. "I can only protect him as long as he is helpful, otherwise he will go into the prison system and I can't watch him then. His deal went up with that bank and as long as he is claiming to be behind that there isn't much I can do to help." Clancy was now looking at the floor and Esposito waited for him to look back up at him before he added his last piece of ammo in a grave tone. "Once he leaves this precinct it's out of my hands, but as long as he is helping us I can make sure you are both protected."

"Your protection didn't do much to help those people in the bank." Calncy pointed out and this stung a bit, the body count hand risen by over twenty and that didn't sit well with Esposito, still he could not let that show on his face, he had to gently but quickly get this fish on the boat.

"That was the FBI that handled the bank and we know the guy behind this has a man inside there, this is me giving you my word, the feds will be kept out of this and I will personally make sure you and your brother are taken care of." Sometimes a detective had to be willing to lie to get the job done, after all you can't catch fish without bait.

"Can I come down and stand outside the room with you?" Clancy asked, the fish was in the boat and now all Esposito had to do was take it off of the hook.

"Sure." Esposito said and then he turned and led Clancy down in the direction of the interrogation rooms.

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Castle had wanted to call his mother and see if she knew anything more about Alexis' condition the moment he had been loaded into the limo. Thankfully one of the officers that had rescued her had also loaned her his cellphone and she had called him while he was riding down in the elevator for the second time, but his over used cellphone's battery had gone dead while he was in the middle of talking to her. Still he had a phone number and he was grateful for that and there was a phone in the limo as well as somewhere to charge his phone. That had been when he remembered Meridith, Alexis' mother.

His first wife may not have been much of a mother to their daughter, in fact he lack of attention had caused his little girl no end of heartache when she had been younger, but he still knew he owed her a call. So he had made the call. It turned out to be one of the hardest phone calls he ever had to make, he expected his ex wife to yell at him or be in tears, instead when she did speak her voice was calm and lifeless. That wasn't the woman he had ever known, she sounded broken and for the first time since he had known her she just let him speak and only mumbled replies of a few words or less. It was too late for her to change the destination of the private jet she was on so Castle arranged for another armored limo and security team to meet her at the small private airport she was landing at at in New York and drive her to Maryland, she didn't object at all and had ended the call after saying less then a dozen words. Castle began to wonder if she was okay, but that thought had only lasted a few seconds before he was on the phone with his mother.

Martha had told him that Alexis was stable but once they got to the hospital she was going to need an operation in order to relieve pressure on her brain brought about by blood. This news made Castle wince and it was at that moment that he and his mother had both broken down. Everything that had happened to them in the last few hours and all there was to come bore down on them and now that they had time to think it was just too much. All Castle could do was mutter apologies into the phone, his mother had told him it wasn't his fault but he knew better, he had been the one who had reopened the case in a childish attempt to impress Beckett and now his family was paying the price. How could he have been so stupid and full of himself? He had let everyone down, at the thought of Beckett he knew she would want an update so as hard as it had been he had ended the call with his mother and called the woman who had taught him what little he knew about handling situations like this.

It was while he was dialing Beckett's number into the car phone that the thought crossed his mind that he was only now just starting to understand what she had gone through when her mother had been taken from her. He had never had a family to lose, his mother and latter his daughter had been his only family, and they had always been safe and sound before he put them in harm's way. Now he was starting to understand and his admiration and pride in her for being able to go on grew. That was when he had made the choice, suddenly things became very clear to him. If the worst did happen he had to make something good come of it, that was what his time with Beckett had taught him. She had taught him that the only way to show true respect for the memory of the dead was to let them motivate you to do something better, to be something better. So he would not let himself drown in self pity, no matter what happened. He would work to bring something good out of this mess. That was what Alexis would want him to do more then anything. It was when he called Beckett that he first heard the news.

It shocked him to the core. Yes in his head he had known that Bracken was willing to do anything to keep his secret, but in his heart it hadn't really sunk in until that moment. He had always believed that they would stop the worst from happening, he had been wrong and now more then twenty people were dead. Beckett had tried her best to reassure him that it wasn't his fault but he couldn't help but feel guilty just the same. Still when she had asked he had promised that he he wouldn't do something stupid. Beckett had then had to hang up because she had reached the 12th precinct and she needed to work the case, so Castle let her go without a complaint.

He picked up the car phone to call his mother but that just caused his mind to wonder to thoughts of all the people who had lost a mother, daughter, or some other relative at the bank. He thought about the gut wrenching pain they must being going through. He thought about how some of them would not make it to the other side of their grief and thus would cause their families even more heartbreak. He thought about how they may not ever get closure or know why their loved ones died. He didn't know how long his mind went around in circles of gloomy thoughts like this, it could have been a few minutes or half an hour but when he was done with them his cellphone was charged enough for him to switch it on again. He then made a fateful choice, one that he knew in his head was most likely wrong but his heart wouldn't let him do anything else.

He picked up his phone and opened the Twitter app, he then sent out a simple Tweet. He was almost in a trance as he did so, all he could think about were the families and how if he were in their shoes he would want to know the truth.

The tweet he sent out simply read "Bracken behind bombing in New York Too".

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Beckett was riding up int the elevator with Gates, Ryan, and Mary Cauldwell when Gates turned to speak to her.

"Beckett I will be busy with calls and trying to keep the mayor and the feds off of this case for as long as I can, so I would like you running point on this. Are you up to it?" Her captain asked.

"Yes sir." Beckett replied remembering the title by which the older woman liked to be addressed.

"Good." Gates replied and Beckett then watched as he tone turned more gentle as she turned her attention to the teenage visitor who was with them in the elevator. "Mary will you be okay waiting for me in the break room?" Gates asked and Beckett had to give her new captain this, she knew how to handle a crisis and kids. Beckett had never been good with kids herself, still thanks to Alexis she was learning. Her mind drifted to the teenage girl for a moment but she wouldn't let herself get emotional. Emotions would cloud her judgment and she needed to crack this case if Alexis was ever going to be safe again. She was switching to cop mode now and thinking about her options. It was as she was switching modes that she heard Mary Cauldwell answer that she would be okay just ask the elevator doors slid open, she then watched as Gates led the girl in the direction of the break room before turning to Ryan.

"I want you to run an in depth background check on this lawyer Simmons has. I want to know everything about her, we need to know how she is connected to Bracken and Simmons. This whole Lawyer ID may just be a cover so look for signs that she isn't who she says she is." Beckett instructed, she was now fully into boss cop mode.

"You got it." Ryan replied and headed in the direction of his desk.

"Good, and whatever you do don't let Peterson know what you are doing. He may be working for Bracken. I will try to find out what he is up to." Beckett added.

Beckett looked around for Esposito but didn't seem him but she did spot Sorrenson, who she guessed she wasn't getting rid of any time soon. She asked him about Peterson and got the same information Esposito had been given but it was then that something clicked in her head.

"Ryan, get the footage from our security cameras from just before the bombing and meet me in the tech room." She barked out.

"Okay." Ryan replied, he was clearly puzzled but he could tell she was on to something so he didn't say anything.

"Kate, what are you looking for?" Sorrenson asked, clearly he was as perplexed as Ryan.

"I'll let you know when we find it." Was all Beckett said in reply without turning to look at Sorrenson, she was lost in thought.

A few minutes latter the three of them were gathered around the monitor in the tech room looking at the footage. It took a few minutes but at last they found footage and were able to follow Peterson. Finally they found him just before he left, sure enough it was happening just like Sorrenson said. Peterson got a phone call which he took in a lonely corner of the bullpen, and then he and his men rushed out of the building.

"There." Beckett said pointing to the screen, she had found what she was looking for.

"What are we looking at?" Ryan asked.

"Will you said he got the call a few minutes before it hit the news?" Beckett asked turning to face Sorrenson and Ryan with her back to the large monitor.

"Yeah a few minutes give or take, must have been when the bomb went off." Sorrenson replied, still clearly in the dark.

"Look at the time stamp." Beckett said turning to point at the screen and both men took a more careful look at the screen and then it dawned on them, they saw what Beckett saw. "He got the call a full four minutes before the bombs went off."

"How could he have know about them going off unless he was in on it?" Sorrenson observed and his face turned red as he put the pieces together. "My boss was in on this the whole time!"

"Yeah, now we just have to prove it and that will be easier said then done." Beckett said turning to look at the screen once again.

"Maybe not." Ryan said as he took a closer look at the tape. "That looks like his own personal cellphone."

"He wouldn't be stupid enough to take a call like that on his own phone." Sorrenson remarked with disbelief.

"When things were coming together in this big of a rush maybe he would." Ryan said hopefully.

"There is only one way to find out. Ryan we need his phone records, if nothing else they should tell us who is running things for Bracken." Beckett said turning to face Ryan once again.

"It will not be that easy to get the records for a Special Agent in Charge, you will need a warrant." Sorrenson pointed out.

"I think I know where we can get one." Beckett said to surprise of both men. Normally she would not resort to what she was about to do but with the stakes so high and time running short she saw no other option. It was about time having contacts paid off for them any way. If Bracken was going to use politics and contacts against them, they could do the same. She pulled out her cellphone and brought up the number for Castle's car phone. When he answered she spoke quickly. "Castle we don't have much time, are you still friends with that judge with that judge who can do a perfect impression of Homer Simpson, I can't remember his name."

"Yeah why?" A depressed sounding Castle said on the other side of the line. Normally Beckett would ask if he was okay but she she knew he wasn't and as she had just remarked time was not on their side so instead she got down to business. "Because I think you asked him for a favor."

**Well I hope this chapter was worth the wait. Sorry it took so long and thanks for hanging in there.**

**Thank you to everyone who reads this and to everyone who leaves a review.**


	57. The story will be finished Next week

**I am really sorry about this but life has gotten in the way and I will not be able to finish this story until next week. I am sorry but I have been busy with school and I have been on the road almost all day every day this week and I don't have a laptop so while I have the last five chapters plotted out in my head I have not gotten time to sit down and write them. It seems every time I try someone needs me or I have to leave the house and then I have just enough to get back and get a few hours sleep. That is the bad news. The good news is next week is completely clear as far as I can tell so I should be able to finish up this story completely next week.**

**Also if there is still any interest in this universe I do have an idea for a sequel story and don't worry it will not take as long to write as this one and it will not be as intense but there will be a focus on the characters and what they went through in this story. If you think of this story as a three parter that opened the season then the next story would be the first regular episode of the series. It will be a lot shorter and more fun to read and have more comedy in it while not forgetting the events of this story.**

**Again I am so sorry and thanks for hanging in there with me, my life has been a mess lately but I am slowly getting it back on track. If there is any interest in a follow up story let me know in the feedback or via Pm and I will get to work on the next story.**

**Oh and since they have gotten some new likes I am just letting anyone who took a looking at my Mass Effect stories that I will also be trying to finish them. **

**One thing I will not be finishing is my second Susan Wright story, I am sorry but she is now the main character in the novel I am working on and I find it too hard to write her in two completely different universes. Still if anyone wants to use her in the context of Castle or even finish Move Time! Feel free. I will even gladly send you my notes on where that story was going and the character if you want.**

**Well I am rambled on long enough. Sorry this wasn't a new chapter and I know you all must be getting sick of my excuses by now but I really am trying and look to be back on track starting Monday and maybe if I catch a break Saturday or Sunday.**

**Thank you once again for hanging in there.**

**Oh and don't worry I am not rushing the story, the ending I am writing is the one I always intended for this story, it's just things are hitting the fan now so the last five chapters will be very fast paced.**

**Thanks for reading and for all the help you have given me over the past couple of years on this site. I am a much better writer thanks to you guys. Thanks for putting up with me.**

**Let me know if you are interested in that follow up story.**

**See you latter.**


	58. Chapter 54

**Sorry I think this version of the chapter started out okay but then it fell apart. I have posted a new version of Chapter 54 which I think is better, if you want to know more read my notes at the end of that chapter. Sorry if you liked this version but I think I screwed up and I couldn't make it work with the ending I am writing without screwing things up.**


	59. Chapter 54 Fixed

**CHAPTER 54**

After over an hour of phone calls and meetings, not to mention looking at in coming footage of the dead from the bank bombing, Captain Victoria Gates felt herself in desperate need of a cup of coffee. Even if it did come from the machine that The Writer in his ego had set up, she still needed it. The tough as nails police captain hated to admit it but as she stood there taking her first sip, the brown liquid was one of the best things she had ever tasted and she could feel the caffeine wash through her body and give her new energy. This would help her to go on even if it did mean she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. Still chances were with Ava still down with the flu she wouldn't get much sleep any way.

One thing Gates had learned in her time on this earth, besides how to be a good cop who didn't put up with racism or sexism from anyone, was that sick seven year olds were no fun to deal with. They were almost as bad as having a couple of teenagers who were just starting to test their wings.

One of the things she admired about her husband was the fact that he some how managed to work from home and yet still keep all the chaos under control. Yes, she knew when she got home there would be a sink full of dirty dishes and Marian would be ready to collapse into bed and sleep for a week, but she also knew that there would not be total chaos and he would insist that she stretch out and relax and vent about her day, instead of working on those dirty dishes himself. He never pressed for details on her cases knowing that was against the rules, he just sat and listened as she complained. He would always insist that it was what he had signed up for when he became a cops' husband and he talked her into having kids, but she was still amazed by what he was able to put up with every day.

She was also grateful that he had talked her into having kids. To her logical mind it didn't seem like a good choice and it did add to her stress level on some days, but it was also the best choice she had ever made and she would not have made it without him. She hoped that he understood just how grateful she was to him for pushing her when at times she would fight him tooth and nail on the subject, for breaking her down and going through all of this with her. Even on days like today when it left her sleep deprived and in a bad mood.

Thinking back to her kids caused her mind to wonder to the teenager girl she had brought to the station with her. Mary Cauldwell had been through a lot and she needed to check on her. The girl should have been in the break room but so far Gates had not taken a good look around the small room. Her attention had been fixed on the overly complicated and expensive coffee machine in front of her and then as she drank the coffee her mind had wondered to her own family. Now with her mug completely drained, she placed it on the counter and turned and looked around the small break room slowly.

The Teenage girl was curled up into herself on the old couch that was against the far wall of the break room. She wasn't asleep, but her eyes were closed and she looked small and almost peaceful laying there. Even from across the room Gates could see that Mary's eyes were puffy and red, she had clearly cried herself out earlier and was now quietly sad. Gates hated to think about Mary being all alone in a strange place when the reality of her situation had finally sunk in, but that was what had happened and Gates knew there was nothing she could do to change that. Still she could do something now so she decided to give herself a few more minutes on her break and she quietly made her way over to the couch and sat down beside the teenage girl.

Mary sat up when she felt the old worn cushions of the couch indent under Gates' weight, she didn't resist at all when the older woman put her arm around her, she was that completely emotionally drained from crying earlier.

"How are you doing?" Gates asked, her voice was just above a whisper.

"It's all just starting to sink in." The girl admitted without looking up at the woman who was still holding her.

"Don't be afraid to ask me for help." Gates said as she rubbed her hand soothingly against the girl's arm, it was the only helpful thing she think of to say at that moment and it didn't seem to be worth much.

"Right now all I really want is for you to catch the guys who did this to my dad, I don't want them at his funeral." There was a firmness to Mary's voice and she sat up a little straighter when she said this, looking Gates in the eye.

"What makes you think they will be there?" Gates asked. In truth she knew very well what the teenage girl was thinking about but she didn't like that her mind had gone there, also her instincts told her that Mary would feel better once she had voiced her fears out loud so she gave her a chance to do just that.

"The FBI will be handling his funeral and I don't want anyone who helped get my dad murdered by working for Bracken there acting sorry that he is dead when really they are not. I don't want to have to look at those murderers while my father is put in the ground." Mary explained somberly and this made Gates more determined then ever to catch Bracken and everyone working with him, or at the very least give Beckett and her team the time they needed to catch them. The one thing she still had to get used to that came with being a captain was that she didn't directly work the cases herself, and today that was rubbing her the wrong way.

"We are all doing our best." Was all she could say to assure the girl, she knew better then to make a promise she may not be able to keep. Mary nodded that she understood and it was then that Gates noticed that in her one had the girl had been holding her cellphone the whole time, it was a smart phone and it looked like it's web browser was opened. "What have you been doing on your phone?" Gates asked, glancing down at the device.

"Just looking up information on the foster system." Mary said with a sigh and then began to explain nervously. "I mean I know I will only be in the system for about three years or so, but I am still not looking forward to it."

"Don't let what you read online worry you too much. The system only makes the news when it fails, I am sure wherever you end up it will be a good family that wants to help you." Gates said in comforting tone, the girl was clearly scared and trying to hide it.

"That's what I keep telling myself, but the truth is no matter what happens I will still end up with strangers." Mary said as she looked away from the older woman.

"Well you have my number, if something does go wrong I want you to call me." Gates instructed firmly.

"Thanks Vicky." Mary replied gratefully and it was then that Gates' cell phone began to ring.

"I'm sorry but I need to get back to work." Gates said and she truly was sorry.

"That's okay, you go nail these guys." Mary said and she sounded a little but better then she had a moment ago. Gates nodded and then stood up, it was time for her to go back to work.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kate Beckett hated to admit it but Will Sorenson had just helped her make a big break in the case, maybe. They couldn't be sure if the information they retrieved applied the way she was guessing it did, but if it did then they had a made a big break. She strode quickly across the bullpen to her captain's office. She had just seen Gates enter the small room with her cellphone to her ear and while normally Beckett would not interrupt her boss in the middle of a call she knew that her captain needed to be alerted to the latest development in the case right away, seconds could count. So Beckett knocked on the closed door and quickly entered when she was called in.

The first thing Beckett noticed was that Gates looked more peeved then usual as she stood behind her desk, but Beckett didn't have time to ask what was wrong instead she had to make her report. "Sorry to interrupt you sir but I just found something you need to know about."

"What is it?" Gates aksed and she clearly had something on her mind but Beckett was grateful that she seemed to be willing to wait for her to finish before she brought it up.

"Well sir I was running a background check on Tasha Abakumov, Simmons lawyer." Beckett began to explain and Gates nodded that she understood so the detective continued. "At first ever thing checked out, it looked like she came over here when she was a child with her parents got a law degree and now works as a high price defense lawyer, but when I called NYU where she got her degree they had never heard of her and it turns out her office space is rented out by the month and I can't find a single record of her defending anyone in a case in the state of New York."

"It's a cover ID." Gates observed. "That means that we still have to get Simmons a real lawyer before we can talk to him."

"That isn't all." Beckett said urgently, this was the part she really needed her captain to know about. "Sorenson called a friend of his at the FBI and her description almost exactly matches that of an Elena Markov. Sir she's a hit woman for the Russian mob who left and the FBI has suspected of operating in this country for some time. She is considered armed and very dangerous."

"That explains why Simmons changed his story." Gates said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, it does." Beckett agreed. "It also means she could be walking into this precinct at any moment."

"Alright I'll alert all officers that an armed suspect is on the way and they should be ready to make the arrest the moment she comes through the front door. If it is her once she sets foot in this station she is not getting out." Gates said with determination in her voice and then added. "Good work detective."

This surprised Beckett because the captain still looked upset with her even as she was telling her what a good job she had done. "Was there something else, sir?" Beckett asked, she didn't like knowing everything that was going on and the look on her captain's face told her she was missing something big.

"It will keep until after we have taken down Markov and gotten Simmons a real lawyer." Gates explained as she picked up the phone and waved Beckett out of the room. With no other business for the moment Beckett turned and left closing the door behind her, she still felt uneasy but she decided that for now she should focus on taking down Markov, she wanted to be on the first floor watching the doors to make sure she didn't get away. She was on her way to the locker room to grab her bullet proof vest when Ryan came running up to her and it looked like he had bad news.

"Hey can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked as he waved Beckett towards a quiet corner of the bullpen.

"Sure, what's up?" Beckett asked puzzled, she didn't like the look on Ryan's face any more then she had liked the look on her captain's, something told her she was about to get bad news.

"It's about the records for Peterson's cell phone, there is some bad news on that front." Ryan said slowly and it seemed like he wasn't sure how to break the news he was about to give her to Beckett.

"Well we knew it was a long shot that he would be using his own phone." Beckett said, she didn't see why this would upset Ryan so much as a detective who had worked vice he had to know what a long shot it had been."

"No, it's not that." Ryan said taking in a breath and then he began to explain. "The call wasn't received by his personal cell phone, it was a prepaid. Like all prepaids a name has to be given for the account when the company is called to activate the phone. Now most perps are smart enough to give a fake name but it seems Peterson is mostly a paper pusher and he gave his real name so I was able to get the records for that cell."

"That's good, but given that any name can be given by anyone we need more then that to link him to the phone." Beckett observed and she began to see where the bad news came in.

"Well there is good news on that front too." Ryan explained and this left Beckett even more puzzles so she let him continue. "It seems three months ago his company offered him a deal where if he gave them his credit card number they would auto renew his service every month and he wouldn't have to keep buying phone cards and entering them into the phone."

"He wouldn't be stupid enough to take that deal on a phone he was trying to hide?" Beckett asked, not believing what she was hearing, this was a bigger break then she thought it was.

"He was." Ryan reported but he still didn't seem happy even as he continued to give her more bad news. "He also has only called or received calls from one number, another prepaid cell phone."

"And we can't link that to Bracken in any way." Beckett said with a sigh, finishing Ryan's thought.

"It's not just that." Ryan said in a grave tone and then he lowered his voice to a whisper. "The name the phone is registered under is Kate Beckett."

"Damn It!" Beckett yelled, normally she had more control then that but at that moment she lost it. "You see what he is doing?" She asked Ryan as her face turned red.

"Yeah." Ryan replied nodding that he understood but there was also a look of confusion on his face. "What I don't get is Bracken has to know that anyone could register a prepaid in your name, I mean maybe if there were fake banking records he could make this stick but with those destroyed what makes him think this will work for more then a day or two?"

"It's not about that any more, not completely." Beckett observed gravely and her voice took on a hushed somber tone. "It's about showing me that he has the power in this situation, he wants to show me that he can destroy my life just as easily as I can destroy his."

"I still don't get it, he will still go down once all of this comes out." Ryan pointed out and his voice had a tinge of false hope to it.

"My mom was in criminal defense, she believed everyone had the right to a fair trial." Beckett let out a bitter laugh at this thought and then continued. "Now he is even using that against me, so I will see this coming."

"No, we wouldn't let him get away with this." Ryan objected and sometimes Beckett forgot that underneath the man who wore a nice clean suit to the precinct every day and almost never cursed there was a street wise detective who had worked vice years longer then she had and had been able to blend into the criminal underworld. That tough Ryan was the one she was seeing right now, but she also knew he was not seeing the whole picture. All Ryan saw was that his friend and boss was in trouble, he wasn't able to see the big picture, so Beckett would have to lay it out for him.

"It's not just up to us, at some point this case has to go in front of a jury." Beckett said and the bitterness of a second earlier was now joined by a hint of depression. "Defending anyone is all about giving the Jury any hint of reasonable doubt and that is what this will do. I opened the door by covering for Montgomery and now he has used that to give a tint of uncertinty to every case I work including this one. It means this case will end with me losing my job and after a very public trial and no matter what people think privately he will be free." Beckett paused for a moment and let this sink in, not just for Ryan, but for herself as well. She continued her voice was just above whisper. "Remember O.J and every mob related case where someone important has gotten off, that is what he is doing. He is just twisting the knife now and letting me see it coming, this is personal to him so he is taking risks he normally would not just to prove to me that he can."

"You can't be sure of that, you have never even talked to him in person." Ryan point out, he knew first hand the dangers of judging a suspect whom you had never spoken to. Profiles could lead a good cop down the wrong path and that was why law enforcement rarely followed profiles alone, people were more complex then that.

"It's the only way the story makes sense." Beckett pointed out and there was a false calmness to her voice, the kind that came with feeling helpless and out of options. "If there is one thing I have learned from being with Castle, it's how to make sense of a story and this is how it makes sense." On any normal day Ryan may have taken the softball Beckett had just lobbed over the plate at him and made some kind of comment, he didn't today and Beckett was grateful for that but it also made her sad. The fun Castle had brought into her work and that had helped her start to crawl out from under both her work and her mother's case had vanished and been replaced with a sense of helplessness. "Everything I have touched on this case could be thrown out of court or made to look bad to a jury now, and since I have been the only one working this case for over a decade that means just about everything we know has a chance of being thrown out."

"It will never happen, there would be too much public outrage. Bracken would never be able to run for president and that is his goal." Ryan pointed out hopefully.

"I think deep down he knows that now that he has been named that part of his life is over, he is hoping to weather the storm and maybe with his ego he can fool himself into thinking things will be okay, but he has to know somewhere that everything he has worked for is going to be destroyed so this is now about revenge."

"Your mother died trying to take him down and now he wants you to think you destroyed her life's work, bastard!" Ryan cursed through clenched teeth, finally seeing the whole picture.

"Yeah, my mother always maintained that private feuds ran counter to true justice and everyone should get a fair trial no matter how guilty they looked to the outside world, and that is how he is going to get away with this." Beckett observed and she seemed to be saying it out loud more for herself then for Ryan, she looked away from the Irish detective as she whispered the next part. "I don't know what to do, if we push he is sure to have things set up to try and make me look more guilty. One thing is for sure, this is the end of my life as a detective, the NYPD will never let me touch another case."

Ryan didn't like the sound of this, it sounded like Beckett had given up hope and he didn't want to see what could happen if that happened. He knew that when it came to this case she could some times have blinders on and only see the most depressing outcome possible,he chose his next words with the purpose of trying to pull her out of that tailspin. "We don't know any of this for sure, first we need to talk to Gates and the DA and then we will figure out our next move. Bracken is exposed thanks to you and you haven't let your mother down."

"Thanks." Beckett muttered in reply but she didn't sound like she believed him.

"Call Castle, I know he has a lot on his plate but I know he can help you." Ryan quickly injected and when Beckett looked over at him to object he quickly added. "You said it yourself, you are only seeing the full story because of him, if anyone can find you a way out of this it is him."

Beckett couldn't help herself, a soft smile broke across her face, just for a moment as she thought about the man who had made her want to live again and given her the big break in the case, it was a gone a moment later but Ryan saw it.

"See, you know I am right." The other detective insisted firmly.

"Yeah, I know it's just I don't want to bother him right now with everything that is going on." Beckett said and now she was thinking of Alexis. From what Castle had told her it sounded like the girl would live but with how much brain damage they had no idea.

"Hey, I don't have kids but I am a guy so let me tell you if Jenny had been hurt and I had nothing to do but sit on my hands and wait to find out how bad she was I would welcome the chance to think about how to nail the guy who hurt her." Ryan said and his voice became softer as he explained.

"Yeah, we promised each other we wouldn't lose ourselves in grief." Beckett said and Ryan could barely hear his friend's voice, it sounded as if she was only just now recalling a conversation she and the writer had earlier. "I just didn't expect it to be this hard."

"Well I have never seen you give up on anything really important since I have worked with you, don't make me watch this be the first time." Ryan said and his voice was almost a plea. Beckett was his boss and normally it would not be his place to speak to her like this but he didn't see anyone else around who could help her so it was on him. He had decided he was never letting anyone down again, not after what happened to Cauldwell. That still hurt and the only way he knew to get over it was to learn from it and always be there for his fellow officers, even it made him feel uncomfortable. He wouldn't let Beckett lose herself. She may have been his boss but she was also his friend and even if she was right and she did lose her job she and Castle would always be his friends and he was going to make sure they came out of this alright.

"I wouldn't." Beckett said looking over at Ryan, he didn't look completely convinced so she added more firmly. "I promise."

"Good, so you will call Castle?" Ryan asked and he sounded relieved.

"Yes, but first things first we have to report all of this to Gates." Beckett said pulling herself together and starting to think like a cop once again and not the lawyer she would have been if her mother had not be taken from her, she would not let that stand. Still she knew she had a hard road ahead because if she broke the case outside of the law she would be betraying everything her mother stood for, that was the choice Bracken was trying to use to break her and she would not let that happen.

"Are you sure going to _Iron Gates _is the right move, she is not going to take it easy on you and we could wait until we have more facts." Ryan stated, using the old department nick name for their boss.

"I am sure." Beckett insisted firmly. "You may be though but she hates corruption and I think she wants to see Bracken taken down almost as much as we do." Ryan didn't seem convinced, to his mind Gates was still a cop hater and he didn't like the idea of seeing his friend at her mercy. Beckett knew him well enough that she could see these thoughts written on his face so she added on a more practical note. "Besides if this case is going to stand any sort of a chance in court we need a time line that doesn't leave room for it to be argued that we withheld information."

"Yeah I guess you are right about that." Ryan agreed and he looked as if he was going to say something else but then he was interrupted but was sounded like a dozen or so loud popping sounds coming from directly below his and Beckett's feet and this was followed not even a second later by a loud alarm going off. "That sounded like gunshots!" Ryan observed and training and instinct caused him to quickly draw his weapon and run towards the elevator.

"They came from the first floor lobby." Beckett observed, her own weapon was drawn and by the time they reached the elevator she was two paces ahead of Ryan. As the doors swung open Beckett mentally braced herself for a life or death fight. She had no idea what the situation was and that was the deadliest type of situation that a police officer could enter, for all she knew she could be out numbered and out matched as far as training went. There was only one thing she was sure of, once the elevator reached the lobby she would be face to face with a Russian Assassin by the name of Markov and she would be in a fight she could not lose.

**Sorry about the repost but the last chapter was just awful. I have been without my meds since Sunday and my mind was in a jumble, in fact it still is. The fact is in the last chapter none of the character actions made sense or were in character and I completely lost plot because I was typing out too many ideas at once. That chapter was not up to the standards I set for myself and what was worse expecting you to accept it was an insult to you as readers.**

**I am sorry.**

**I didn't see how bad the chapter was until I woke up this morning so I quickly rewrote it to explain character motivations and so the actions would fit into the ending I have planed out for this story. This does mean that the end of this story will be delayed by one day but I would rather fix a mistake then leave be and try to force it to work in the story. After all the help you guys have given me with my writing you deserve better then that, so if I think a chapter is bad I will fix it.**

**Still if there are problems with this chapter, please let me know. I am posting it as a new chapter so I can get your notes on it, those are always helpful.**

**Oh and if Caskettfan5 is reading this, I am reading any PMs you send me on the last few chapters but depending on how the week goes I may not get around to applying your spell checks until the weekend after I finish the story. I will apply them to the last few chapters all at once. If I don't respond to you right away I am sorry, I am still grateful for everything you have done but I am having trouble keeping things balanced right now without my meds. **

**No one needs to worry about me I will be back on them tomorrow.**

**Sorry about the repost and I hope this edited chapter is an improvement over the old one.**

**Thanks for putting up with all of this, you guys are the best.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for help editing this chapter, not just with corrections but with notes on things i didn't make clear as well. You are the best and this story wouldn't be nearly as good without your help.**


	60. Chapter 55

**CHAPTER 55**

Richard Castle was flanked by two members of the private security team he had hired as he rolled his wheelchair off of the elevator and followed the small elderly nurse, who's name he had managed to find out was Doris, down the hallway whose walls were almost too white and clean, to the waiting room that other members of his private security team were guarding. There was something unsettling about the whole situation, the walls were so white he felt like he was going down the bright tunnel that lead to death. Then there was the almost complete silence, once the hospital had been informed of the situation and the danger they had been kind enough to clear half a floor so the Castle family would be safe and they had even gone so far as to silence the intercoms on that floor so the small family could have whatever peace there was to be had. The problem was it all felt wrong to Castle after everything he had been through the past few days and what was still to come, so if anything it sent his nerves farther on edge.

Still he had no idea what kind of state his mother, who took things to heart even more then he did, if that was even possible, would be in. He knew someone had to be strong and out of everyone in his family he had it the best. Yes he could not walk, but he was alive and on the ride over his legs had started bouncing up and down again when he got nervous, so that indicated that he was getting better, at least he hoped that's what it meant. The truth be told he couldn't care less if he would ever walk again at that moment, all he cared about was seeing his daughter and mother recover from the mess he had gotten them into. These were the most basic thoughts and emotions that were passing through his head, but the moment the large sliding door to the private waiting room was pulled open and he wheeled himself past the guards and into the room, these emotions went to war with other more complex feelings.

The only person in the waiting room was his mother, Martha Rodgers, and she had been sitting in rather comfortable chair on the other side of the room. The moment the door slid open she had jumped and dropped the styrofoam cup of coffee she had been holding onto the floor, Castle could tell she had not touched it as it's luke warm contents spilled out onto the bright blue carpet. Still at that moment she didn't seem to care and neither did he. Instead he took the brief moment he had as she was rushing over to him to take in her face, and what he saw was what sent even more emotions to war with in himself. He had never seen his mother like this.

She didn't look broken exactly but she did look like she was unsure of what to do or feel. She was not sobbing or completely out of control in any way as he had expected. Instead the old actress just looked completely drained, not like she had given up exactly but like she didn't have any fight in her left and she was accepting the situation. Her son supposed it made sense, she had more time to come to terms with everything and she had been there, being hauled off to her death with his daughter, so there had to be some relief now that they were in a nice, safe hospital and Alexis was safe. Still there was something else there too, it was as if while she was grateful to be safe she had accepted that the worst could happen and making a fuss wouldn't do anything to change that.

This was something Castle was not used to seeing from his mother. She was Martha Rodger the Broadway actress who had pushed and shoved her way to the top, she had made it by always fighting. This was the woman who had had a child out of wedlock at a time when that was a major taboo and should have created a scandal that ended all hope of pursuing her dreams and yet she had admitted to her son once, after she had too much to drink and after she confessed that her ex husband who Castle had warned her about had taken all of her money and that she had nowhere to live at that moment, that even when all her friends and her director at the time had urged her to visit a shady clinic and "Take care of the problem" she had never once been tempted to do so. She wasn't about to give up her dream but she also wasn't about to give up her child, she wouldn't even consider adoption with sealed records, Richard was her child and she wouldn't give him up for anything and she wouldn't let him be used as a weapon against her.

"However she would introduce him to an actress that would become his Ex wife and the mother of his child and then when things went bad insist she had never liked the woman." Castle thought silently to himself, sometimes it was a curse having a brain that was so snarky that it could never completely shut down. Still even that had been done out of love. She had seen he was lonely and tried to hook him up with someone who seemed like a good match and when that woman had broken his heart she had been completely on his side to the point of hating her even more then he did at the time of the break up. That was the kind of love Martha Rodgers had for her son.

Castle felt that love as his mother bent down on her knees and hugged him, he knew that wasn't easy for anyone her age, regardless of how young she always insisted she felt. Despite all the jokes and bitterness he had some times felt towards his mother for not being there for him as much as she should have been when he was a child, at that moment he clearly saw that she had been there for the important things. She had done her best while rebuilding her carrier which had taken a hit due to the scandal, to be there for him. She had sent him to one of New York's best schools after another and never once complained when he got himself kicked out for acting out. He had always been mad at her for not knowing who his father was, after all as a child being a bastard had made it's own problems for him, but she had been there for him, more then his own father.

The love he felt for his mother as he silently clung to her was at war with something close to pure hatred he felt for the man he now knew to be his father. He knew the CIA didn't keep people under cover for decades at a time, he could have come back sooner. Now he had come back and he claimed it was to protect his family. As if he even knew the meaning of the word or had any right to it. What Castle and his mother had worked so hard to build that was family, just showing up after almost forty years didn't give you the right to declare yourself family. What was more he claimed the only reason he had shown up was to protect "his family" and yet where was he when he was needed? Off playing his spy games somewhere. He didn't really care, Alexis, Martha, and yes even the man he called son were just pawns to him. He hadn't been there for any of the real moments that make a family a family so he had no right to call himself family.

What he, his mother, and Alexis had that was family. This man who Castle would never call "father" or "dad" wasn't family of any kind. Hell Jim Beckett who was in his own hospital room being treated for the beating he had taken earlier that day, knew more about real family and was closer to being a part of Castle's family then this man who couldn't even be bothered to show up.

It was as Castle clung to his mother and they cried together in between her whispered updates on his Daughter's condition that he heard a massive, blood curdling wail come from a room just done the hall. He had not been able to bring himself to go to Alexis' room yet, she was after all sedated and his mother who had been there told him he needed to brace himself. He didn't know how long he had held her trying to comfort her and seeking comfort for himself but he guessed it must have been almost an hour. He had been aware somewhere in the back of his mind that his Ex wife and Alexis' mother Meredith had entered the waiting room, but instead of speaking to him she had had a nurse rush her to her daughter's room just down the hall. That was the direction the screams and cries had come from. They sounded as if they were half sorrow and half rage, and Castle was well aware of the fact that they were getting closer.

Castle reluctantly pushed his mother away and whispered "Go get some coffee." into her ear. He didn't often give his mother orders and he could tell she didn't want to obey this one but she did without a word. Castle needed to deal with his emotional Ex wife himself. His mother had never approved of Meredith and Castle suspected it was because the younger red headed actress reminded Martha Rodger of herself and her own weaknesses and how close she had some times come to giving in to them. The truth was nine times out of time Martha had won the battle with all the temptations there were for an actress to be a bad mother and other things, Meredith seemed to have no problem with giving into those same temptations.

If there is one thing Richard Castle knew as a writer it's that the default human reaction to seeing our own weaknesses reflected in someone else is to attack that person. It's a hell of a lot easier then taking a hard look at ourselves and admitting just how weak and flawed we are. This meant that even when they were married things had been tense between the two actresses and things had not improved since Martha had moved in with her son a few years before and now saw first had what Meredith's neglect did to Alexis, even if the girl wouldn't admit it and seemed okay with the way things were most of the time. No child liked the idea that they were not the most important thing in their parent's life, no matter what shell they used to hide it. Martha Rodgers had learned this the hard way when when she had sent her son to what she honestly thought would be the best schools for him as a child and she had left him with babysitters when she had to go on tour to put bread on the table. They had to eat and at the time she thought it was the best option, but as she had watched her once sweet little boy grow up and grow a hard shell of sarcasm and rage that directed it's self both inward and outward in the form of humor and disrespect for almost every form of authority.

Coming from the generation she did Martha understood the need to rebel, but in her son it had been different. It seemed to her that he had been just trying to see what he could get away with and when he was a minor, force her to clean up the mess. It was classic attention seeking behavior and at first Martha blamed herself for not being a better mother. Then he had moved out when he turned eight teen and knocked up a girl a couple of years latter. Martha wasn't surprised when he married the girl, after all it was clear that he was trying to create the family he had always wanted, but Martha had known that he would not last. Her son refused to take any of her advice and when she had a blow up with his wife one Christmas he had sided with his wife, so Martha had left. She gave up and indulged in the worst aspects of her nature. She was by now one of the Queens of Broadway so everyone wanted her at their parties and like her son would later do after his divorce, she became the life of the party. She filled her life with work the critics loved, always being the center of attention at any gathering, and relationships with people she knew didn't really love her. She knew that aspect of his personality he must have gotten from her. That was one reason why once she had come to her senses she was happy when Detective Beckett entered her son's life, She had forced him to stop acting out to a degree and had brought back the son she had not seen since he was a child. That was why at that moment she trusted him to handle his Ex Wife on his own and not take any crap from her. That was why she wordlessly left the waiting room to find a nurse and a cup of very strong coffee. She knew her son could handle this and there were some things a grown man needed to do on his own.

Castle would have given anything in the world for just a moment or two alone to mentally prepare himself before speaking with his Ex wife, but that is not what he got.

"What have you done to my daughter?!" Meredith demanded as she stormed through the swinging doors that were on the other side of the room, by the time Castle had managed to turn around she had advanced to within two paces of his wheelchair and he could see her eyes were already puffy and red from crying.

"I didn't do anything." Castle barked in return a little more harshly then he had intended but he wasn't sorry he did it. Castle was in no mood to deal with his Ex wife's antics and he didn't miss that she had for the first time claimed Alexis as belonging to her alone and not being his daughter as well.

"Don't give me that, don't try to pass off responsibility onto some senator or whoever else you have made up stories to place the blame on in that head of yours. You are the one who put her in danger by chasing after that detective, you failed to keep her safe. This is your fault!" Meredith yelled as she leaned forward and pointed her finger in his face.

That did it, Castle snapped. He had never told his Ex wife what he really thought of her for fear that she would run away and spend even less time with Alexis but at that moment he lost all control. His face turned red and he vented all of his anger in her direction. "I am the only one who has ever been there for her!" Castle yelled and Meredith took a step back, she clearly wasn't expecting this response. "I am the one who had to explain to her on every birthday and holiday why her mother didn't care enough to show up. I am the one who took care of her when she was sick. I am the one who always had to clean up the mess you left behind because you didn't want a daughter, you wanted a shopping buddy whenever the mood hit you!"

"That's not fair." Meredith insisted but Castle was on a roll and wouldn't be stopped.

"I am not the one who ran off and gave up all parental rights!" Castle fired back his face becoming even more red then it had been a second before. "You are the one who did that, so don't pretend to care now!"

Meredith didn't seem to have a response to this, so she just covered her face with her hands and dashed out of the room. On a normal day Castle would have gone after her and try to make things right, but this wasn't a normal day. He took a moment to calm himself and then made his way to his daughter's room, when he got there he saw first hand what had caused his Ex wife to lose control of herself.

Martha had told him everything the doctors had told her and had warned him about what was ahead, but even with that warning he found himself unprepared for the sight that was in front of him. In addition to the cracked rib that had punctured a lung and required an operation, and the broken right arm that required a cast, Alexis had needed an operation to relieve the pressure on her brain from the internal bleeding. That operation had required that all of her long red hair be shaved off and bandages wrapped around her head. As Castle rolled closer to the sleeping form of his daughter he was not even sure it was her. At that moment guilt washed over him once again and he began to silently cry.

Castle wanted to plead with his daughter wake up but he couldn't form any words. All he could to was watch her and silently cry, everything else was outside of his power and he couldn't see anything besides her. That was why he didn't notice when the two expert assassins who had escaped the police and were at that moment dressed in scrubs sneak up outside the room. He was too distracted to see that they waited for the guard to check in on his radio, as he was required to do every five minutes, before they approached him. He didn't notice that as the guard was distracted frisking one of the assassins, the other silently slipped behind the guard and slit his throat with a large knife he had hidden up his sleeve. He was too distracted to see the danger both he and his daughter were now in.

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As Kate Beckett felt the elevator she and Ryan were riding in come to a halt she checked to make sure the safety on her sidearm was off and then she squared her shoulders and prepared for a confrontation with a trained killer.

The 12th precinct was not a new building by any means and while some attempts had been made to make the small waiting area that took up most of the first floor look more modern it was still a cramped space. Beside the elevator doors was a heavy metal door that led to the stairs that were to be used in case of fire. Beyond that was the sergeant's desk that was protected by bullet proof glass. Beside the desk was a large metal detector that everyone visiting the precinct had to walk through in order to get any farther into the building. Beyond that were some metal benches that looked far more modern then the large wooden desk, these were placed against both the right and left side walls and beyond them lay the old wooden doors that lead outside.

Beckett looked around this setting and she spotted a woman she knew must be Markov. There were about a dozen officers crowed around her in a semi circle but she didn't seem to be worried. There were only two civilians in the room as far as Beckett could tell. One was a middle aged woman who was in tears and being held back by a couple of the officers and the other was a tall thin teenage girl who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen. This girl was being held closely by Markov, who had clearly been trained well. The girl was a good foot taller then the older woman and almost as tall as Markov herself, so that meant that the officers didn't have a shot and even if they did get one Markov had a gun pressed to the girl's temple. What was more the Russian assassin didn't seem to be nervous at all. Even in this situation where she didn't have much hope of escape she seemed to be perfectly calm and in control.

Beckett quickly made her way over to the desk sergeant. He was a medium built veteran of the police force with gray hair. His name was Nelson and everyone on the day shift at the 12th precinct knew him because everyone had to pass his desk every day in order to get to work. He had his vest on and his weapon drawn and looked like he was about to step out from behind his desk when Beckett called to him.

"What's the situation?" Beckett asked and Nelson turned to face her.

He knew time was not on their side so he made his report quick and clear. "We attempted to take the suspect covertly while she passed through the metal detector but something must have spooked her because she then attacked officer Corbit and managed to take his weapon which was drawn at the time." Ryan winced at this, he personally knew what it felt like to have a suspect disarm you and he didn't envy the position office Corbit was sure to be in after this. Nelson didn't seem to notice the detective's reaction because he just continued with his report. "We were able to clear all but two civilians out of the building. The two left are a mother and daughter who were waiting to speak with a detective and the suspect then took the daughter hostage."

"What about the shots?" Ryan asked.

"Before she took the hostage there was an exchange of fire with the suspect. None of our people were hurt, he shots seemed designed to force us to take cover and give her time to take a hostage, not to kill anyone." Nelson explained, laying out the fact and then he added his own observation. "She must have a vest on under her clothes because we hit her twice and she didn't go down."

Beckett frowned at this. Most people get knocked down or at least get the wind knocked out of them when their vest is struck by a bullet, Markov must have trained herself to ignore pain. Ending the stand off without letting the assassin go was going to be hard. Beckett was about to speak when a cold and calm Russian voice filled the room, the voice was raised but perfectly calm."You have thirty seconds to call off the SWAT team that I know is gathered outside these doors and let me walk out of here. I will release my hostage only after I am sure I have not been followed. If you do not comply, then I will put a bullet through her head." The voice called out firmly.

Beckett had to act, she couldn't let this assassin go because she had no idea how many more people would be killed if she did, but she also couldn't let the teenage girl be harmed. Enough hostages had died today, she was not going to lose a single person more. Beckett raised her gun and stepped out from behind the desk and when she spoke she was careful to keep her voice just as calm and cold as Markov's had been a moment before. "You kill her and you will never get out of here." Beckett point out.

"I have been in Russian prison, The one's in your country are resorts compared to them, your laws don't scare me." Markov replied smuggly.

"I am not talking about prison." Beckett said and she took careful aim with her gun. "You either drop your weapon in the next ten seconds or I will put a bullet in your brain."

"You are bluffing." Markov snorted. "You would never shoot this girl just to get me."

At this Beckett seemed to begin to lose control, her voice became choked with emotion. "You people have taken everything from me, my family, my job, my life. What makes you think I wouldn't be willing to wound a hostage to get to you. I have nothing left to lose. Besides how many hostages died at that bank? I didn't give up when they were threatened, I didn't even give up when my own father was threatened, what makes you think one more dead hostage means a thing to me or that I care more about a girl who I have never seen before then my own father?!" This drew concerned looks from all the officers present and then the girls mother began screaming at Beckett but she didn't pay any attention to her, she kept her gun and focus on the assassin. "Well times up, what is it going to be life or death?" Beckett demanded coldly and she then advanced to within three feet of the Russian woman who was backing up in the direction of the door but she was slowed down by the hostage who had decided to start fighting with her. The girl had no hope of getting free but the struggle did distract and slow down Markov long enough for Beckett to make her move.

Beckett quickly placed her gun in her holster and when the teenage hostage turned her had so Markov's gun was not directly against it Beckett charged and grabbed for the gun hand. She wasn't thinking in that moment, she was driven by pure rage and the need to do something anything. She managed to pull the gun so that it was no longer pointing at the girl's head and in the struggle the teenager managed to break free and run. Beckett didn't see where the girl escaped to, all of her attention was focused on the gun that she was now in a life or death fight for control of. At some point in the struggle Beckett became aware of the sound of her own gun being knocked from it's holster and and hitting the floor, but she was too distracted by the fight in front of her to do anything about it. She didn't even seem to hear or notice any of the other officers' reactions, all she could see or hear was Markov and the gun. Ryan and the other officers rushed forward and used themselves to create a human shield between the newly freed hostage and Markov while Beckett was still fighting the assassin.

The battle was now hand to hand combat for survival and Markov clearly had the upper hand, she had been trained in some form of martial arts and while Beckett was as well Markov was clearly a master. She slipped out of Beckett's grasp and at the same time slammed a powerful kick into Beckett's left side. This caused Beckett to spin to the right but she wouldn't let herself go down. She knew the other officers couldn't help her as long as she blocked their shots but at that moment she didn't care, she needed to the be the one who took down Markov.

Beckett Saw Markov aiming the gun at her so she did the only thing she could think to do, she charged the other woman yet again and this time she balled her right hand into a fist and connected with Markov's jaw. This sent Markov flying back and Beckett was on top of her. Both women went fly out of the precinct doors and onto the street outside. Somewhere in the struggle the gun went flying. Beckett aimed another blow at Markov but the assassin easily blocked it and then came up with a high kick that connected with Beckett's head. This caused her vision to go blurry and she hit the sidewalk hard.

Beckett shook herself and tried to get her bearings, it was then that she spotted the gun within arm's reach, laying on the ground. Beckett went for the gun but Markov grabbed her from behind and wrapped her arm around her neck in a firm grasp. Beckett knew she was in trouble, from this position Markov could either choke her out or break her neck, she needed to get the gun and fast. Beckett jabbed frantically with both her elbows with all of her strength. One of her blows must have been lucky and hit Markov's vest right where a bullet had impacted and pressed it hard into the tender flesh there because the next thing Beckett knew her attacker was crying out in pain and the death grip on her neck loosened just enough for Beckett to break free of her grasp. Beckett was out of breath but she kept fighting, she threw herself forward and and grabbed the gun that was laying on the ground with both hands, she then rolled over so she was on her back and facing up, she took aim at Markov. Markov clearly wasn't thinking any clearer then Beckett had been a few seconds before because she made the mistake of charging the detective who was laying on the ground. Beckett quickly squeezed off two shots and while the first one missed and impacted on the sidewalk the second one hit it's mark and her target fell to the ground, crying out in pain.

Beckett then saw that she had hit Markov in the right leg and blood was pouring out of it. Still Beckett remembered her own training and as she quickly got to her feet stepped several feet back so she was well out of Markov's range of attack. Beckett was feeling dizzy but elated as the SWAT team came running up and cuffed the assassin. It was then that Beckett began to become aware of the normal flow of time and found that what had felt like hours to her had in reality only been a matter of seconds and she had been moving too fast and too far for the other officers to get to her before the fight was over. The next thing Beckett became aware of was that her whole body was sore and her head was buzzing like there were a million bees inside it but she was also aware of a sense of pride and relief that was filling her. Beckett was not only riding the high that came from winning a life or death fight but she was also enjoying her first real victory in a long time. There was no down side to this victory, they had someone alive, and it was clear this person was Bracken's weapon of last resort. This was a big win so it was with some sense of satisfaction that a winded and bruised Beckett read the angry Russian Assassin her rights.

**Well hope this chapter was worth the wait and now new chapters will be coming every day. I got caught up doing research for the novel I am writing and lost all track of time, sorry. Also I am awful at writing action scenes and it is something I am trying to get better at, so I had to rewrite this chapter a few times. I guess I am more interested in how action effects characters then in the action it's self. I am still not sure I am happy with this chapter but I hope it was good enough.**

**Oh and I can't remember an episode where we see the inside of the entrance to the 12th so I just assumed it looks like a remodeled version of the entrance to the 15th in NYPD Blue since the outside of the 12th is the same building and the inside shots on NYPD Blue always seemed to match up pretty well with that building.**

**Thanks for sticking with me and with only a few more action scenes to go and then character moments there shouldn't be any more delays.**

**I hope this chapter was good enough.**

**I have made some changes to try and make the fight scene make a little more sense and I have added a couple of lines of dialog. it's not much but I think it makes things a little more logical. As I said fight scenes are something I really have to work on as a writer so I find any and all feedback when it comes to them helpful.**

**Thanks for all of the reviews and all the help you are giving me.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for help with this chapter.**


	61. Chapter 56

**Chapter 56**

Richard Castle was not comfortable, he had to roll his wheelchair up to his daughter's hospital bed at an awkward angle and stretch out his right arm to a degree that was painful if he wanted to hold his sleeping daughter's hand in his own, but he did it and he was not letting go. He couldn't, all he could do was hold onto her and plead with tear filled eyes for her to come back to him. His mother had explained that the doctors had told her that if Alexis made it through the night the worst was behind her, then they just had to be worried about brain damage. The thought that they would have no way of knowing just how badly his daughter was hurt until she woke up brought a fresh wave of tears to the writer's eyes. He couldn't stand the thought of his bright daughter who always seemed to be the smartest person in the room, having brain damage.

"What if she couldn't finish high school, what if she was a basket case that he would some how have to take care of from his wheelchair, and what if she didn't even remember him?" Castle reached up with his left hand and tried to wipe the tears from his eyes as these painful thoughts crossed his mind, still it was no use, the tears he wiped away were freshly replaced with new tears that completely clouded his vision. "Would he even be fit to take care of her if the worst happened?" Castle didn't have an answer for that so instead he just clung onto her hand harder then he ever had since taking her to mall when she was a little girl.

All of this accounted for Castle not noticing the two cruel faced assassins, until the slid the glass door to his daughter's hospital room closed. He looked up and to his horror he saw two muscle bound men in scrubs grinning wickedly at him from the other side of his daughter's hospital bed. One was slightly taller then the other and he had a large very sharp looking knife that had fresh blood dripping from it clutched in his left hand. Suddenly Castle remembered the man who had been standing guard outside the room and he had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach that he knew what had become of that man.

Castle reacted quickly and reached for the nurse call button that was part of a remote control that attached to the wall by a long wire that hung on his side of his daughter's bed. Still the bigger of the two men was slightly faster and before Castle could press the button he had the bloody knife pressed up against Alexis' throat.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you Mr. Castle." The smaller of the two men said in a calm well educated tone that made Castle feel more sick then he already did. Castle made a show of slowly removing his hands from the remote. "Good boy." The man said in a sarcastic tone as he made his way around to Castle's side of the bed. "After all we wouldn't want my friend here to get nervous and have his knife slip, would we?" The silent man who held the knife then flashed Castle another wicked grin.

"What do you want?" Castle asked brokenly refusing to look at either of the two men, he was now in a situation where if he said or did the wrong thing he would end up having to watch his daughter slowly bleed to death in front of his eyes.

"That is easy Mr. Castle, all we want you to do right now his pick up your little cellphone and tell everyone that those tweets you sent earlier were full of crap." The shorter man instructed and as he did so he reach over and took Castle's head in his hand and forced the writer to look up into his cold, mocking eyes. The message was clear, he was in complete control and the writer didn't even get to choose what he was looking at.

"Do you really think anyone will believe that?" Castle objected and this time there was some fire in his voice, he was playing for time. He didn't know what he was hoping would happen but he knew stories well enough to know that once he did what these men wanted they would have to kill him and Alexis any way, so with his large body reduced to the state where he couldn't even fight his only option was to play for time and hope someone some how saved his daughter from the trained killers. He didn't care what happened to himself, but he needed her to live.

"Given your history I don't think it will be hard for you to convince people that you were drunk or high and completely full of shit." The man said in a mocking tone and he saw Castle opening his mouth so then he quickly added the next point. "Then you are going to call your little girlfriend in New York and get her down here so we can finish this once and for all."

This made Castle's face lose what little colour it had, he was white as a sheet at that moment. "You can't really think that will stop this case and put things back to the way they were?" Castle stuttered out, trying to think of something, anything he could say to delay these men from forcing action on him. He tried to pull away from the shorter thug's gaze but the other man just held onto his head tighter and Castle was once again forced to look into the eyes of a monster.

"We have our orders and we always complete our mission." The thug said coldly and he leaned down to within a few inches of the writer's face. "We can wake up your daughter and have some fun with her before we kill her." He then pointed out as he grinned from ear to ear.

This caused Castle to panic and it broke him. "Hand me my phone, it's plugged into the charging station on my chair." Castle whispered, he had no choice but to give in.

"Good choice." The thug said and he let go of Castle's head, Castle's hands and head were now free but he knew better then to try anything while the other thug still had a knife to his daughter's throat.

It was at that moment that he heard a voice coming from the entrance to the room and it was the last voice anyone had expected to hear. It was raw and choked with emotion, but it was also angry and while there was a tint of fear to it the voice sounded like it knew what it was doing. "Stop, Let my daughter go or I will blow your brains out!" The voice commanded and Castle looked up and it was with surprise that he saw his ex wife standing in the door way holding what must have been the dead security guard's gun and she was pointing it right at the surprised looking man who was still holding a knife to Alexis' throat.

"Oh please." The thug standing beside Castle scoffed. "You are not a killer, look your hands are shaking." Castle looked across the room and could see that it was true, still Meredith seemed more determined then ever to do something, even as the big man with the knife turned to face her. Still the lead thug continued to taunt the actress. "Besides the safety is on." He pointed out.

This caused Meredith to make the rookie mistake the killers were waiting for, she took her eyes off of them and looked down at her gun, desperately trying to find the safety and switch it off. The thug with the knife then charged her as Castle watched with horror, the only thing he could think to do was yell some advice to Meredith. "Meredith, that is a Glock, it doesn't have a safety!" Castle yelled, but by that point all he could see was the back of the killer with the knife, he then heard three shots ring out but by that point he had his own problems.

He had quickly turned his chair and was reaching for the nurse call button when the lead killer jumped him from behind. They were then in desperate struggle for the remote. It took everything Castle had but he managed to reach for it and briefly touch the call button. He had done it. Castle's whole world then went fuzzy as the thug forced his chair to spin around and then began punching him in the face. Castle could feel the blood trickle down to his mouth and he was pretty sure he felt and heard his own nose break but at that point he was too dizzy to fight back in any way.

Castle felt like he was about to pass out having failed his daughter when both men turned their heads in the direction of a woman's scream coming from outside the room. It must have been a nurse responding to the call and despite how dizzy and completely out of it Castle felt he knew he had to use the thugs distraction to his advantage. Castle reached into one of the storage pockets on the side of his wheelchair with his right hand and after fumbling for a second he found what he was looking for. It was his pistol.

Castle had never intended to use the Smith and Weston pistol he had owned for years on another human, he had only gotten it because for one of his early books he needed to know what it felt like to hold a real gun. He had then gotten addicted to learning all of the rules of proper gun safety and improving how good a shot he was. To this end most weeks he would go down to the range at his exclusive gun club and practice, this was of course why he had been able to beat Beckett on the shooting range all those years ago, she may have been a trained cop but she was cocky and not doing her best because she thought she was dealing with someone who had never fired a gun before. In truth Castle never wanted to use his gun as a weapon but when things had heated up he had decided that if it came down to it he would kill to protect his family. As the thug returned his attention to the writer that is exactly what he did. He quickly pressed his gun to the thug's temple and squeezed off two shots. The other man's blood and brains exploded all over Castle, covering his face and clothes, but he did care, the man was dead. He pushed what remained of his body off of him and his chair.

It was then that Castle remembered Meredith he quickly moved his chair around the bed and that was when he saw the most shocking sight he had seen in his life. The thug with the knife was laying on the ground with three bullet holes going right through him. Castle could hear alarms and dozens of footsteps in the hall but his eyes were locked on the form of his ex wife.

Meredith still had the glock clutched in her hand but she was laying on the ground and clearly in pain. The knife had stabbed her in the chest and then made a large gash all the way down to her stomach. "Hang on Meredith!" Castle pleaded but he knew from years of research that this was not the type of wound anyone recovered from. With every painful breath Meredith was spitting out blood and a large pool was pouring out of her chest staining both her clothes and the floor.

"Tell Alexis I was wrong, she should have been the most important thing in my life and I should have seen sooner that I would do anything for her."Meredith choked out and then even as Castle pleaded with her to fight and a large group of doctors and security dashed into the room, her eyes went glassy and the actress drew her last breath.

**I know this was just a quick action chapter but it didn't feel right putting it with anything else so it is here on it's own. I am still not happy with the way I write action so if you can think of a way I can get better please say so in your reviews.**

**Thanks a bunch for all of your help and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for all the help with this chapter.**


	62. Chapter 57

**Chapter 57**

Kate Beckett had to wait for the paramedics to bandage up Elena Markov, the wound on the assassin's leg had only been a minor graze that wouldn't require a hospital stay but Beckett still had to wait while the Russian woman was treated. While she waited Beckett had to have herself checked out as well. Once Beckett had been assured she didn't have a concussion, just a very bruised head and body she turned to deal with her captain. She expected to be chewed out for putting the life of the hostage in danger, what she didn't expect.

"Do you mind telling me what your partner is up to naming Bracket, a suspect in an active case, on the internet?" Gates demanded.

Beckett took a moment to think about this and then she replied softly. "I think that may be at least partially my fault."

"Really, how so?" Gates asked as she tapped her foot.

"Well I once told him that the family members of victims needed to know the truth about why their loved ones died, I guess the only thing he could think to do to help the victims of the bombing was giving their relatives the truth." Beckett explained, in truth she was a little angry with Castle for making the same mistake twice but she also understood why he did it and hoped her captain would as well.

"I see." Gates said thoughtfully and then added a moment latter. "Well what is done is done. We now have to deal with it. There are protestors and the media are outside Bracken's headquarters and home."

"Bracken is here in New York?" Beckett asked surprised and her heart jumped at this news, there was a chance that maybe she would get to put the cuffs on him. She knew the chances of that were slim but it would be a dream come true for her if it did happen.

"Yes he is." Gates replied. "Not only that but Peterson, the FBI agent in charge is dead."

"What?" Beckett asked shocked. "How did that happen?"

"I don't have the details yet but it seems he vanished from the scene of the bombing about forty five minutes ago and then his body was tossed out of a van and into the crowd of protestors gather outside his apartment building." Gates explained calmly.

"Wow." Beckett mouthed and then added. "It sounds like the gangs Bracken bullied may not be as scared of him as they once were."

"That is very likely, he did take out the head of the Tongs, they at least must be mad enough to kill." Gates agreed. "At any rate this means someone from the AG's office is coming up from DC to take charge and there is her." Gates nodded in the direction of Markov who was almost done being bandaged up. "Until then how do you want to handle this?" Gates asked and that surprised Beckett, she had expected to be removed from the case but she guessed in for a penny in for a pound applied in this situation.

Beckett took a moment to think before she replied. Her first instinct was to go down to Bracken's home and work the crime there but she wasn't sure she would be able to control herself if she came face to face with the senator. Then there was Markov, Beckett had just beaten her in a fight and while she wouldn't be easy to break Beckett knew she stood the best chance. She took a breath and then made her choice. "I'll send Esposito and Ryan to work the scene in front of Bracken's building I will question Markov."

"Sounds good." Gates said with a nod. "I need to get upstairs, there are a million calls I have to deal with now." The police captain then turned and left Beckett to yell out instructions to Ryan and Esposito who were by this point down on the street watching the scene there. They quickly grabbed their police unit and were gone. This left Beckett alone to deal with Markov just as the paramedics were finished with her.

Despite the bandage that was half way between her ankle and right knee Markov was being stood up between two heavily armed members of the SWAT team and both of her arms were cuffed behind her back and he legs were in shackles. Clearly the SWAT team was taking no chances. Her business suit was in tatters, in part from the paramedics working on her as well as the SWAT team searching every inch of her body. Like Beckett she was bruised all over and in pain, but she was not showing any fear. In fact the assassin's face remained completely neutral as Beckett stood in front of her. Beckett took hold of the Russian woman's cuffed hands and dragged her into the 12th precinct. She then decided to do something that she did two or three times a week just to stay in shape, take the stairs to the fourth floor where the homicide detectives worked. It would be no trouble for her but the detective knew that every step would be agony for her prisoner and it would send the message that she was in complete control of everything that happened from that point on.

The assassin didn't let her discomfort show on her face but she was panting heavily by the time Beckett finished dragging her up the stairs, a sure sign she was in pain. Beckett had not said a word and was dragging her in the direction of interrogation room one when Markov finally spoke.

"I am not saying a word until I have seen a Lawyer." The Russian woman said firmly. Beckett had been expecting this and inside she smiled because it just meant she had to use her plan B, a plan she expected to work a lot faster then the by-the-book plan A she was required to at least try first.

"Fine, in that case I will have to take you to holding." Beckett replied and began to to pull the assassin in the direction of the holding cells. As they approached interrogation room two Beckett could see four officers in body armor standing guard outside the door but there was no sign of Clancy Simmons. She figured the DA had given the okay for him to talk to his brother inside the room. Beckett stopped when she reached the door. "Hold on a second I think I left my note book in here." She said in an absent-minded manor as if she was telling Lanie they needed to make a quick stop while they were on their way to a bar or club. She then opened the door and stepped inside and took a quick look around without paying any attention to the two men inside.

"My brother doesn't speak for me, I told you I am not saying anything un…." Vulcan Simmons stopped speaking in mid sentence as he took in the sight of the woman that Beckett was dragging in to the room with her.

"That's right, I got her." Beckett said confirming what a very shocked looking Simmons suspected and then she returned to looking around the room before she turned to leave a second latter. "I must have left my notebook at my desk." Beckett observed and then with her back to Simmons casually added. "Too bad about your guy at the FBI, looks like someone got to him and I am sure they will want a word with you at some point." She then shoved Markov out of the room and let the door slam behind her for maximum impact. "Let me know when his real lawyer gets here." Beckett instructed Officer Murphy who was in charge of the guards. He nodded that he understood and then Beckett forced Markov down the hall.

The cells were under heavy guard and given the chaos that had just broken out a few floors down Beckett wasn't surprised to see that the prisoners were bouncing off of the wall and banging against the bars, making as much noise as they could. The cell that had been cleared for Markov was at the end of the line and once the male prisoners caught sight of the two beat up yet still attractive women walking down the row they began making cat calls and some less polite remarks. Not that Beckett paid these any mind, she had put up with far worse in her time, but it was yet another thing that could grate on the handcuffed Russian's nerves over time.

The cell that Beckett had ordered cleared for Markov had two officers standing guard outside of it. Without saying a word they opened the cell and Beckett shoved Markov in, hard. The corner of the cell had a rather large lump of human vomit in it where a drunk had thrown up about half an hour before.

"You think you can break me with stairs and puke, Detective?" Markov asked with disdain in her voice.

"I don't really care, in fact I hope you don't talk. I want the DA to be able to throw everything she has at you. In the mean time Bracken will go down and I get to make your stay here as uncomfortable as possible. I am going to win this." Beckett said forcefully and then without taking off the Russian woman's cuffs she slammed the cell door shut and calmly walked away.

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Senator Bracken lived in one of the most expensive apartment buildings in New York city, it towered over the streets and there was plenty of private security and police outside so there was little chance that he would be able to hear any of the protestors gathered in the street. Still that had not stopped a rather large and angry crowd from gathering in said street by the time detectives Ryan and Esposito pulled up in their car. The police had taped off an area in front of the sidewalk and were holding back the crowd from where the body lay face up on the street right in front of the door to the apartment building. Even from halfway down the block the detectives could smell something wretched coming off of the body.

"What smells like human barbeque?" Ryan asked as he and Epsosito lift the bright yellow police tape and made their way over to Lanie who was hunched over the body.

"Looks like he was beaten and then someone went at him with a blowtouch, but they were careful not to touch his face." The medical examiner reported, looking up at the two detectives.

"So someone wanted us to ID him fast." Esposito observed as he looked down at Peterson's face which was contorted in the one of the worst looks of pain he had ever seen on a murder victim's face. "Did they really have to drive that stake through his chest?" He then asked pointing to a large metal spike that had torn the former FBI agent's chest open and was holding a piece of paper there. Ryan then walked away to talk to the officer in charge of the scene and take a statement from him.

"My guess is he would have died without it, but I will not know for sure until I get him back to the lab." The ME replied.

"What is that any way?" Epsosito asked.

"It's a railway spike, the kind that is used to hold tracks together." Lanie answered.

"So our crime scene is somewhere they work on trains." Esposito observed.

"That seems likely, even if he was alive he would have died within seconds of this spike being pounded into his chest and whoever did it must be strong." Lanie said as she took another look at the body.

Ryan then returned with a sickened look on his face. "Any luck tracing the van that dropped him off?" Esposito asked his friend.

"No, it was stolen from a rental lot and it was found torched two blocks away." Ryan said with a shake of his head. "What's the piece of paper say?" He asked Lanie as he pointed to the markings of black magic marker that were scribbled on the paper and then he added. "Maybe the handwriting can tell us something."

"I'll check it out once I get it back to the lab." Lanie said with a nod of her head. "As for what is written on it, it just says _You were warned."_

"Sounds like the message was intended for Bracken." Ryan observed.

"Yeah." Epsosito said as he took in a breath as he looked at the angry crowd. "It seems like everyone wants him dead."

A second later they heard a noise and the crowd got louder as large town car with blacked out windows pulled out of the apartment building's parking structure and the police had to clear a path through the protestors as it drove down the street.

"I got the plate number, we need to run it to see if that car belongs to Bracken. We need to know if he is running." Esposito barked out as he quickly pulled out his notebook and began writing.

"I think it was him." Ryan reported gravely as he looked up from a text he had on his phone. "I just got a text from Sorenson, it seems Bracken's private jet just filed a flight plan to take him to a global warming event in Paris."

"Shit!" Esposito cursed and he hit his leg with his fist. "You know what that means." He said and Ryan nodded that he understood but Esposito said it out loud any way, he needed top voice his frustration. "If he makes to to France and this becomes a federal case where the death penalty could be applied we will never get him back."

"That means we have an hour to get a warrant for him and stop him from getting away, that is when his plane is due to take off." Ryan observed grimly.

"Let's get back to the 12th, this will not help us get Bracken." Esposito said and then he and Ryan dashed back in the direction of their squad car while he pulled out his cell phone and began to dial. He knew it would be better if Beckett got the bad news from a friend and she needed to know that they had to work faster then they were already working. Everything had come down to this one hour, it was all or nothing. They were finally the hunters and not the hunted but their prey was about to escape their grasp.

**Well hope you liked this chapter. As you can see it is down to the wire now. Thanks for reading and for all of your helpful reviews.**

**Thanks go out to Caskettfan5 for help editing this chapter. Thanks for sticking with me for all these long months, you are the best and make the hardest part of writing fun.**


	63. Chapter 58

**CHAPTER 58**

The moment Beckett heard that Simmons' real lawyer had finally turned up she burst into interrogation room two and slammed her fist down on the table. "If you have anything to tell us now is the time." Beckett demanded and there was fire in her eyes. Simmons' lawyer tried to object but Beckett wasn't paying any attention to him. "Right now you have no deal and the people behind this are about to get away, so I have no reason not to nail everything on you!"

"Listen to her, we are in real trouble." Clancy Simmons butted into the conversation, he was sitting on his brother's side of the table but he had clearly had enough of everything that was going on.

"What is he doing here?" The middle aged male lawyer demanded as he looked over at the drug dealer's brother and then to Beckett. "Get him out of here."

Beckett was about to comply with the demand when Vulcan Simmons surprised everyone and spoke up and when he did it was with force and he was clearly angry. "No one decides what I do except me!" He boomed and this drew all eyes in the room to him. Vulcan Simmons had clearly had enough of being pushed around by other people, he was used to making his own fate and Beckett hoped her little show of force with Markov had done its trick. Vulcan next turned to face his brother who was sitting on his right hand side. "My own kid brother doesn't get to tell me what to do!" He barked at the clearly chastised Clancy Simmons, but then he turned to his Lawyer on his left hand side. "Still he is family and he doesn't just care what happens to me because he is paid to!"

"Well you need to make up your mind fast, Vulcan because if you don't give me something right now I am just going to have to toss you into general holding while we prepare all the charges and it is over crowded in there right now so I have no control over who your cell mate will me." Beckett said as she leaned against the metal table with both arms and her eyes had such fire in them that Vulcan Simmons could not look away.

"Are you threatening to put my client in the same cell with that killer, because you can't do that." Simmons' lawyer objected.

Beckett smiled smugly as those words seemed to put the fear of God into both Simmons boys and yet she had not said them, Still she waited a moment to give the words that had been said time to take full effect.

"You people promised to protect him!" Clancy objected and his face was turning red.

"Only so long as he is helpful and tells the truth." Beckett shot back at the brother and then she turned her attention to the lawyer. "I have not threatened your client, I just gave him the facts. A case like this will take a while to sort out without his help and until then we have the right to hold him and if he doesn't help us I don't have any reason to tell my boss we should use our limited department man power to protect a suspect who is not being helpful in any way." Beckett knew she had to tie things up fast so she was coming down with all the force she could at this point. She couldn't let Bracken get away.

"We want a deal." The lawyer objected.

Beckett then turned her full fury on the short balding man sitting across from her. "Why should I give him a deal?" Beckett demanded and then her face went red. "He broke the last deal and because of that over two dozen people are dead in the worst attack since nine/ eleven. Tell me how do you think the public will react if we give the person who says he is behind that a deal? My last orders are to come down hard on whoever was behind that bombing and if your client was lying about that then why should I give him another deal?!" Beckett then turned her attention to Vulcan who was nowhere near as smug as he had been any other times she had spoken with him, or indeed just a few moments before. She softened her tone somewhat but there was still the same unmovable force to it. "If on the other hand he provides information that helps us in time and it turns out he was being threatened then I have a reason to have a word with the DA when this is all over and keep him under protection."

"I want something in writing." The lawyer insisted.

"Yeah, you have already broken your word once and those guys who kidnapped me are still out there." Clancy added and he was now swaying from one side of the argument to the other and was unsure what the safe move was. He was scared not just for his brother but for himself. "Why Should I trust you?"

"Because no one here has lied to you." A voice called out and Beckett pulled out her cellphone from where she had been holding it under the table and removed the earpiece from her ear and placed it beside the cellphone and switched the phone onto speakerphone mode.

"You had that on the whole time?" The lawyer asked, and he was clearly shocked.

"I asked detective Esposito for advice on how to handle the Simmons because he has worked with them before. It's no different then if he was standing on the other side of that glass." Beckett explained as she motioned to the one way glass that made up the wall of the room that was directly behind her. "If you want to file a complaint you can but that will not stop your client from going into holding while it is made and I can't spare the manpower to watch him twenty four seven."

"Vulcan don't trust them!" Clancy angrily yelled at his brother.

"Clancy, I didn't lie to you." Esposito's forceful voice came over the speakers of the phone. "I made sure your brother was safe, even when he lied to us and I told you I could only protect him as long as he told us the truth. We even protected him from a threat that we were not warned about despite the fact it led to several officers getting hurt and a girl who had nothing to do with this being taken hostage." Clancy didn't respond to this right away so Esposito added more forcefully. "We have gone beyond what we said we would do, but the free ride is over. Either you and your brother start helping us or we stop helping you. You are the ones who didn't keep your word!"

The lawyer looked like he was about to say something when Vulcan spoke up, and when he did it was in a more subdued tone of voice then anyone in the room had ever heard him use before. "It's Bracken." He said.

"Shut up!" The lawyer yelled but Simmons reached up with his cuffed hands and smacked the lawyer across the face.

"This is my life!" Vulcan Simmons yelled and then he turned by to Beckett and spoke quietly again. "I never had any direct contact with him but I had to know it was him to operate." Simmons explained.

Beckett was elated inside but she knew they would need more then this to stop Bracken, the word of a drug dealer who was admitting that he didn't have any direct contact with the senator would not be enough to stop the plane from taking off and leaving US airspace. Clearly they were closing in and Bracken was scared but that didn't mean they could make the case in time. "How does that help us?" Beckett demanded.

"Because my drug money was funneled through Bracken's campaign, that is how he is never short on cash." Vulcan said looking Beckett in the eye.

"How was this done?" Beckett demanded, she needed answers and fast.

"Bracken's right hand man is also the guy who handles all of the money for him, everything goes through this one guy. His name is Charles Taylor and he has an office here in the city and if you give me a pen and piece of paper I can give you the number everyone calls him on." Beckett handed the drug dealer what he asked for and he began writing.

"You are willing to make a written statement to that effect?" Beckett asked as she stood all the way up.

"Sure, now that I know he is going down." Simmons said and the smugness was back. "I am sure the DA will know that they have to make me look good for the case to hold so I am sure you will do your best for me." Simmons said with a sickening smile as he handed the piece of paper back to Beckett and sure enough it contained the same number that the registration claimed was a number that belonged to her.

Beckett couldn't stand spending another second in the small room with the scumbag, but she knew she had to work with him in order to make her case, so she picked up her phone and turned and left. Once she was out of the room she took her phone off of speakerphone and spoke to Esposito and Ryan who were on their car's speaker phone. "Did you get all of that?" She asked.

"Yep, and I am just getting the addresses of Taylor's office and home from the computer. The office is closer so we are heading there now." Ryan replied.

"Good, we need to hurry." Beckett said and she took in a breath to calm herself. To her on a personal level the current situation seemed much more intense then anything she had been through as a cop, even looking at the ticking timer on a dirty bomb and not left her this wired and tense.

"Damn it!" She heard Esposito curse and she could hear the siren go on and the car speed up on the other end of the phone.

"What's happening?" Beckett asked concerned and suddenly she wished she was in the car with her two partners.

Ryan spoke up and it was clear this was because Esposito was focused on driving as fast as he could in New York City traffic. "We just got a report on the radio of shots fired at Taylor's office about ten minutes ago and it looks like he is dead and the suspects are six Chinese guys in masks."

"Fuck, the Tongs got to him!" Beckett cursed loudly as she entered the bullpen and then drew all eyes to the detective since she rarely cursed and dropping the F bomb was almost unheard of from her, but she couldn't help it. Everything she had ever worked for was slipping through her hands and there was nothing she could do about it. Still she took a deep breath to calm herself before issuing orders to the two detectives on the other end of the phone. "Go there any way and see if you can find anything. This must be what really spooked Bracken. If you can find the prepaid phone everyone has been calling, that together with his link to Bracken may be enough for us to get a warrant."

"Right." Both detectives said almost on top of each other.

"Oh and be careful." Beckett said somberly and then she hung up the phone. She was then trying to decide what to do next she she spotted a very sober looking Sorenson coming towards her. They say bad news comes in threes and she could only hope the saying was wrong because that would mean that after she heard whatever piece of bad news the former FBI agent had to give her there was still one more piece of bad news to come.

"Kate I need to talk to you." Sorenson said gravely and he led Beckett over to her desk and motioned for her to sit down. Beckett wasn't normally one to let herself be controlled by a former boyfriend or anyone for that matter, but she had a feeling it would get the information out of him faster and at that moment she just wanted to hear the bad news and get it over with.

"Will, what is it?" Beckett asked looking up at the nervous man who was pacing back and forth in front of her desk.

"I know I am not the best person to tell you this, but I thought it would be better if you heard it from me then if you heard it from the media." Sorenson said as he rubbed his hands together and continued to pace back and forth without looking at Beckett.

Beckett suddenly had a very good idea of what Sorenson was about to tell her and it was more then her heart could take at that moment, still she had to know so she asked. "What's happened to Castle?"

"The first thing you should know is that none of these reports are official and we don't have any real details yet, but it is being reported on every news outlet so I thought you should know." Sorenson had ceased his pacing but was still rubbing his hands together and shifting from foot to foot and he still was not looking at Beckett.

All of this was more then the detective could take so she looked up at him and barked out an order. "Just tell me what happened!"

Sorenson seemed so taken aback by this that he didn't even pause for a breath before he spoke up. "Castle and his family were attacked at the hospital." He could see Beckett's heart drop to the pit of her stomach so he quickly added. "It looks like they were unharmed but it is being reported that his ex wife, the mother of his daughter was murdered in the attack."

Beckett felt her world spin. She didn't like Meredith, but she liked Alexis and this whole time she had been hoping Alexis would be spared the pain she herself had gone through, but now that bastard Bracken had brought that pain to someone else's door. She couldn't believe it, she had grown close to Alexis over the past few days and she knew that while Alexis was not as close to her own mother and she had been to her's the pain would be no less great. Part of Beckett wondered if Alexis would be in for even more pain. After all this was coming on top of an attempt on the teenage girl's life and the nagging question of "What if" would be hanging over her head for the rest of her life. "What if her mother had come to her senses and spent more time with her? What if going to college on the other side of the country caused her to spend more time with her mother? What if as her mother had gotten older she had matured and the relationship had been patched up?"

As an adult who knew Meredith, Beckett knew that the answers to any of these questions was not likely to be yes, but they were still questions she knew she would be asking if she were in the redhead's place. What was more Alexis was so open and kind and seemed to have moved past any resentment she had felt towards her mother years ago and she seemed to still love her despite all of her faults. This would hit her hard and once again Beckett was grateful that while her own mother had always down her job and been the best at it, family had come first. It would have been easy for her mother to have left her to be raised by other people and the public school system but she always made time for her daughter, so that when she did die Beckett wasn't left with a bunch of nagging "what if" questions.

This would all be if the girl woke up without brain damage, and if she did it would make things even worse. Beckett suddenly felt ashamed for trying to run before when she panicked. Still as a cop she knew she couldn't change the past and she also knew that she was the closest thing this teenager had to someone who would understand what she was going through. She would be there for Alexis no matter what, but first she needed to nail Bracken, this had to over and done with once and for all so they would all be safe and no one else would ever have to worry about losing their mother to this monster ever again.

Beckett must have been thinking for some time because the next thing she was aware of was her captain calling to her and it sounded like the older woman had been trying to get her attention for some time. "Beckett, my office, now." Gates ordered and when she saw Beckett slowly stand up she turned and entered.

Beckett slowly entered Captain Gates' office and closed the door behind her. She didn't feel like talking, she just wanted to get the third piece of bad news out of the way. Everything was going wrong and she just wanted to get to the point quickly and get the pain over with.

"Detective I will come straight to the point, I have been ordered to take you off the case and not to try and stop Bracken's flight from leaving." Gates said and she was firm but there was something in her eyes that told Beckett she was just as displeased with this outcome as the detective she was giving the order to was.

"What, Why?!" Beckett demanded rather loudly, but Gates didn't let this bother her.

"Because he is claiming he is being targeted by terrorists and there is no proof to back up the writer's tweets, but that because of them the NYPD is not doing everything it can to protect him. So the feds are taking over and they see no reason not to let him leave. In fact they think he will be safer in France until this whole mess is sorted out and more American lives will not be put in danger."

"They can't do that, he is a suspect in my investigation and it is an insult to the whole force to imply we would let him or any other suspect be bumped off in the middle of a case!" Beckett objected as she banged her fist down on the desk.

"I know that and I made those same arguments but they fell on deaf ears." Gates explained remaining calm. "So far you have no real proof. You have one drug dealer who says that he works for someone who works for Bracken but you have no real proof linking the two and while we know he is the only suspect who makes sense, that is all we have. We don't have any proof linking Simmons to Taylor at the moment and we have no proof Bracken committed these other crimes."

"I can't let him get away." Beckett replied brokenly.

"I know, I hate this but unless you can think of something right now that he left behind that will link Bracken to these crimes, we can't stop him." Gates said firmly.

This started the wheels in Beckett's mind turning. She was not going to be beaten but she needed something to hold onto if she was going to keep fighting and as always she turned to Castle. He had taught her that the story had to make sense so that was what she clung on to. He may not have been in the room with her but in spirit he was, she decided to combine everything she knew about her mother personally with everything Castle had taught her about the story making sense. Her mind quickly raced over every detail and to try and find the parts of the story that didn't make sense and there was one big one. Ever since this whole thing had started Bracken and his people had been acting like she knew more then she did, that could only lead her to one conclusion, the proof had been right in front of her the whole time.

Then there was the phrase Gates used about leaving something behind. She knew her mother, she knew she would have known how much danger she was in, she was a smart woman and she would have left something behind to protect her family just like Montgomery had tried to. Still it would have to be something neither she or her father knew about and it had to be well hidden or there was a chance of Bracken's people finding it and since she may not have known who to trust, just giving it to her dad to give to someone if something happened to her could have proven to be a fatal mistake. She began thinking back to every last detail she could remember about after her mother died. She remembered thinking it was strange that her mother had made some changes to her will just over a week before she died and the police had asked questions but since the changes had mostly been leaving little trinkets to her and her father this line of questioning had not gone anywhere.

The trinkets had to be the answer. They were normally the sort of things that a teenage girl and widower would toss into the local second hand store when they moved into a smaller place, but because they had been mentioned in the will both she and her father had treasured them and kept them safe. Her mother had to have known that would be their reaction to the will. It was a twist Castle would love and it made sense of the story. Somewhere in one of those trinkets her mother had left proof that Bracken was behind everything. Then she remembered something else. The family of ceramic elephants that had been left to her in her mother's will. Yes, she had played with them when she was a child and they sat on her mother's desk at work and that was why they sat on Beckett's desk at that moment but she hadn't touched them for years before her mother was murdered. What was more she remembered her mother mentioning in passing just a week before she was killed that she had to get the largest member of the family repaired because it had fallen and been cracked open by mistake. The crack were the glue joined two pieces of the elephant had been in front of Beckett's face every day since she became a detective, but she hadn't thought anything of it until that moment.

Without saying a word to her captain an emotional Beckett dashed out of the office and towards her desk with Gates close behind her. Beckett picked the elephant up and raised it above her head before smashing it down hard on the desk. Gates was about to ask Beckett what she thought she was doing when she saw the detective pick up the answer to all of their prayers with a shaking hand. It was a micro tape, the kind used for recording in micro tape players in the 1990s and early 2000s, and both woman knew without listening to it that it was their proof.

It was a very emotional moment for Beckett as she stood beside Captain Gates in the tech room a few minutes latter, listening to the tape for the first time. It was being duplicated not only onto digital but also onto another tape so it would be very hard to destroy. Beckett was just barely holding it together but she did have enough control over herself to also be recording the sounds coming out of the speakers onto her cellphone, she was not taking any chances.

The tape had clearly been made by Montgomery while he was having a meeting with Bracken and its purpose was clearly to protect the man whom made the tape. Yet at some point Montgomery had had a change of heart and given it to Johanna Beckett. He was most likely try to warn her off, the same as he had tried to do with Kate, but instead the lawyer had chosen to try and do the right thing and bring Bracken down but just in case it didn't work she had also taken steps to protect her family.

Beckett went through an emotional battle like no other as she listen to Montgomery and his friends making a deal with then DA Bracken on the tape, but she held it together. She listened calmly to the tape her mother had made as details were talked about and a voice that clearly belonged to Bracken outlined his plans to keep himself safe. She only lost control and began to cry and she heard Bracken coldly plot the murder of her own mother and admit to having "Killed people before." This was too much for Beckett. She had to retreat to regain control. Her mother had listened to her own murder being planed and still all she had thought about was protecting her family and how to bring this bastard down. At that moment Beckett missed her mother more then she ever had for years. Still she knew crying would not help, she had to finish her mother's work and that was just what she would do.

Beckett was drying her tears in the ladies room with a paper towel when her Captain found her and she was holding a piece of paper. "We have a warrant." She said evenly and then she passed the piece of paper to the detective. "Would you care to do the honors?" She asked. This got a weak smile from Beckett. She didn't say anything, instead she just grabbed the paper and pulled out her cellphone to call Ryan and Esposito. She was greeted with more good news when they answered, they had found the cellphone that all the dirty business was conducted on hidden in Taylor office along with records that had Bracken's name all over them, there was no way his lawyers could get him out of this. Beckett's smile was bitter sweet as she stepped onto the elevator left to make the most important arrest of her life.

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Bracken's first instinct when his private jet had not been granted permission to take off had been to throw and smash things in the back of the plane and that is exactly what he had done but about the time the police cars started showing up and surrounding his jet he began to calm himself. He still felt like a trapped animal and wanted to strike back but he knew that his best chance of beating this was to be calm when he was taken. He had to act as if all this was below him, because it was. He was going to be the next leader of this country and this was just a bump in the road. He had the best lawyers on the planet and he had the power, he would crush the detective who was yelling at his jet through a bullhorn.

His crew opened the doors and began exiting the plane one by one with their hands up, they were not getting paid enough to get into a stand off with the police, plus it would be pointless since the police cars were blocking the runway. Bracken took one last look around his jet and then stepped outside with his best confused look on his face. Once he reached the ground he found himself being shoved up against the jet and frisked he then found himself turned around and found himself face to face with three angry looking detectives, the one in the middle he knew very well.

Bracken could hear news choppers over head and he knew that the media would be gather right outside of the airport so he did what he always did, he put on a show. "What seems to be the problem officers?" He asked as if he didn't have a clue.

Beckett spoke up she flashed a piece of paper and then pulled out her hand cuffs. "Senator Bracken we have a warrant for your arrest on more charges then I can name here." Beckett then roughly slapped the cuffs on his wrists. "The only one I will name is the murder of my mother Johana Beckett."

"I am sure this is just a misunderstanding." Bracken scoffed still refusing to give in.

"I was hoping you would say that." Beckett said and for the first time in a long time a pleased smile spread over her face. "I was hoping you would refuse to work with us. That makes it much easier to throw the book at you. Oh and you should know Taylor was stupid enough to keep written records, I guess he was afraid you would turn on him at some point." This did seem to shock Bracken and his smile vanished, he had always thought Taylor had been a true believer but now it turned out even he had been ready to turn on him. Beckett then decided to twist the knife. "Also we have a tape my mother made of you plotting her murder."

Bracken's face then went white. He knew even if he beat this somehow he would be hounded the rest of his life and the public would accept no less then life in prison for him.

Ryan and Esposito began dragging Bracken away and as she roughly shoved him into the back of the squad care Esposito decided to have his say. "Oh and the Tongs say hello. Intel says they are being run by the son of the man you murdered and he would love for you to beat this wrap so he can thank you in person for all the help you have given him."

Bracken looked shocked and puzzled so then Ryan added his own bit to the conversation. "Yeah someone must have leaked it to them that you were involved, I can't imagine how that happened."

Beckett then watched as the door was slammed on a very sick looking Bracken and the car pulled away. It was then that her legs finally gave out and she slumped to the pavement and began to cry. She didn't know if they were tears of joy, sadness, or anger. All Beckett knew at that moment was that all the emotions she had been holding at bay for years came pouring out in a moment and when it was all over all she could think about was how grateful she was that it was all finally over.

Only it wasn't, the man who had made this possible was still in pain and his daughter was still in the hospital, and it would take months or years for them to recover. Still she knew they could make it and at that moment she couldn't think of anything she wanted to do more then join Castle in Maryland and stand by his side the way he always had hers. She knew that with the amount of paper work she would have to fill out she would be lucky to get there before midnight but she was going to get there. She pushed herself up onto her feet and forced herself to walk over to her car. She just had to make one last push to finish her work as a cop and then she could get on with the rest of her life.

She had done her best and she hoped she had done her mother proud. At any rate, it was over. Beckett never thought she would be able to say those words out loud but as she started her car she did and it was such a relief to hear them after all these years.

**Okay I hope you liked this wrap up of the action and the case. I tried to stick to what they did on the show without repeating dialog or scenes from it. I don't know if I tied up all the loose ends but there are a couple more chapters coming of Castle and Beckett interactions and the next story in this series will pick up a few weeks after this story ended. So the fallout for things like Meredith's death will be handled there but you will get your answers to questions like how bad Alexis is hurt and where Castle and Beckett go from here in this story.**

**Tonight I am going to start applying fixes to my chapters and if you notice a plot hole, a logic flaw, or a mistake don't be afraid to point it out in a review. Even at this stage I am still trying to improve the story and I am going to make edits to past chapters to patch up some plot holes that have been pointed out.**

**Well any way I don't know how good this chapter is as a wrap up to the action but I hope it worked.**

**Thanks for sticking with me and for leaving such helpful reviews.**

**You guys are the best.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for a huge amount of help with this chapter.**


	64. Chapter 59

**CHAPTER 59**

It took Kate Beckett a full minute to push her way through the crowd of reporters that had gathered outside of the 12th precinct when she finally arrived to finish her paperwork and hopefully put the case to bed until the trial which she knew may not happen for months or even a year with a case as big as this one was. She hated the attention but she also knew she had no one to blame but herself, she had of course been the one who had tipped off the press, she wanted to be sure that there were plenty of pictures of the man who murdered her mother being led in handcuffs into the precinct. This would ensure that the public and media would never forget about the case ore let it die, it would be part of the culture from that moment on. This wasn't just a matter of personal revenge after years of looking for answers and seeing everyone around her destroyed by The Bastard, as she had taken to referring to Senator Bracken in her head, this was also a strategic move. She wanted to destroy his political power base and make it impossible for anyone to come to his aid and pull strings. She didn't want to give him any room to weasel out of these charges. The case seemed airtight and would be even tighter in a few days when it could be confirmed that it was his voice on the tape, but this was Beckett's life's work and she had put herself in a position where she would most likely lose her job because of it, so she was not taking any chances.

A small part of Beckett that both her training as a police officer and the part of her that knew her mother hoped that whoever tried Bracken, be it the state of New York or the federal government would consider him a special case and would push for the death penalty. She knew this wasn't right and that as a police officer she should be beyond such petty thoughts but she also knew that Bracken had always run on the tough on crime and no mercy for terrorists ticket and it would give her a great deal of personal satisfaction to see him die because of his hypocritical words. She tried to remain a cop but at that moment she couldn't help the small smug smile that broke across her face as that thought crossed her mind.

When she finally entered the detective's bullpen on the forth floor she had to endure a round of applause from everyone in the room, in fact it looked like the whole station including Ryan and Esposito had gathered in the room. She tried putting on a happy face but in truth she was glad when it all died down and she took her seat at her desk, maybe for the last time, and began filling out reports and paper work.

Beckett had never minded paper work the way some cops did, even before she met Castle she had always liked to have a complete story that made sense. In fact that was one of his books biggest appeals to her in the months after her mother had been murdered and everything seemed so out of control in her life, there were always answers in his books and the story always made sense. Doing paper work helped Beckett focus on the case and it's story and put things in perspective, it in fact had a calming effect on her. However on this case it didn't seem to be working, not just because it was personal but because every line she filled out reminded her of someone else who should be getting credit for breaking the case but she knew wouldn't. She had made peace with the fact that she was now world famous and the media would be hounding her for some time, but it didn't seem fair that she would most likely get all the credit in the public's mind.

More then anything Beckett wished to give credit to her mother, she had solved the case from beyond the grave. Johanna Beckett had kept fighting for what was right even in the face of her own death and it was because of her clear thinking that Kate Beckett finally had closure and would be safe. A single tear ran down Kate's cheek as she thought about this. Her mind then wandered to Ryan and Esposito, they were both her friends and had been with her on this case and been in as much danger as she had been and yet they had stood there clapping like they had nothing to do with it. Even Will Sorenson who had lost his job with a baby on the way deserved some credit. Then there was the girl sitting in the break room who had no family of any kind in this country, her father had given his life to solve this case along with several other FBI agents and yet they would most likely be a footnote in any reports on this case. Another footnote would be Meredith, Castle's ex wife. She may not have worked the case but from the details that Beckett had gathered when she called the Maryland state police, the actress had given her life to protect her daughter. While she may not have been a good person Beckett could at least respect that and what Alexis would be going through for the rest of her life. There was also Captain Montgomery who may have made a huge mistake when he was young but he had spent the rest of his life paying for it and Beckett knew she would not be alive today without him. She then thought of all the people in the bank, their lives had been cruelly snuffed out and they didn't even know that they were involved in the case. They had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time and no one but their loved ones would remember them.

Then there was Castle. The love of her life who may never walk again. He had put himself in front of a bullet for her and had dragged her out of that airplane hanger after she had tried to kick him out of her life. While she knew there was a chance he would walk again but the emotional scars would be with him for the rest of his life. Beckett knew PTSD could not be cured, just managed but on top of that she also knew he would always blame himself for Meredith and his daughter being without a mother. That was just the type of person he was. Still she would be there to help him and she didn't care how hard it would be to stick around, she was done running, there was no place she would rather be then by his side and helping to hold him up until he could hold himself up. Maybe that was why the paper work seemed to be taking so long to finish? She wanted to just get it over with and leave. She began typing faster even as she silently vowed that if she ever let herself be interviewed about this case, she would only do so in order to give credit to all the people who would otherwise be forgotten.

It had been she didn't know how many more hours when she was finally putting the finishing touches on her last report and she heard someone calling her name. She looked up and saw that it was Will Sorenson.

"Hey, I have a flight leaving in a couple of hours and leaving without saying goodby didn't seem right." The former FBI agent explained as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah, of course." Beckett said standing up. "Thanks for everything you did."

"It was nothing, you did the heavy lifting. I was never as good of a detective as you." Sorenson said with a wave of his hand.

"Still you helped and that is more then a lot of people did, so thank you." Beckett said and she held out her right hand. When this case had started she had not even liked her former boyfriend but at that moment this seemed like the right move.

"No problem." Sorenson replied as he took her hand and shook it. "Take care."

"You too." Beckett returned and then her Ex Boyfriend was gone.

A little while latter Beckett had just put the last period on her paper work when she once again heard her name being called. This time it was Captain Gates calling from the door to her office. Beckett stood up and made her way into the small office, Gates signaled for her to shut the door which she did.

"I have just been on the phone for the past hour with the mayor and commissioner and we all agree that you deserve these back." Gate said in a businesslike manor and then she slid Beckett's badge and gun across the desk in the direction of the detective. Beckett was shocked, she had worked the case assuming it would be her last. Still she picked them both up and placed them where they belonged, on her belt.

Still as grateful as she was at that moment there was one question that was burning up her insides so she had to ask it. "Thank you Sir, what about Castle?"

"Mr. Castle breached policy not once but twice." Gates said sternly and Beckett heart sank at this, she couldn't imagine working The Job without him by her side, still she remained quiet while Gates continued. "Not only that but his disability makes him unsuited to work crime scenes." Beckett was about to try and make an argument in his favor but Gates didn't give her a chance. "However I know what an emotional case this was and he took a bullet for a member of this force so as long as he remains in the precinct, does not go to crime scenes, and the two of you keep your relationship out of this building I am willing to let him return to doing whatever it is he does here."

"Thank you sir." Beckett said and she let out a breath she didn't even know she had been holding in. she was about to turn to walk away when her captain spoke up.

"There is one other thing." Gates said and her voice returned to a her business like no nonsense tone.

"What is that sir?" Beckett asked.

"It seems Captain Montgomery was a little lax in the field of making officers and detectives take their leave, he let it build up on the books. That is out of policy." Gates said sternly.

"Yes, sir. I guess I never bothered to look into that." Beckett said with a nod of her head.

"Well I have been put in charge of cleaning up that mess and it seems that you have about three months worth of leave that has built up over the years. I need it off the books and the union would never stand for me just taking it away, so I don't want to see you back her until the fall. You are on leave, understood detective?" Gate said firmly.

"Understood, sir." Beckett replied. "Thank you sir."

"Just doing my job." Gates said and it was then that they heard a knock on the door. "Come in." Gates called and it was then that a tall thin, but strong, bald black man with a gottee beard entered the office. He made his was over to the police captain and before she could stop him he began to kiss her. Beckett guessed that this must be Mr. Gates, grateful to find that after all that had happened his wife was still alive. Beckett could see that she was not wanted so she quietly and quickly made her way out of the room to grab her coat. It was late and she had a long drive ahead of her but she didn't care, she needed to join the man she loved as soon as she could. The last thing she saw before leaving the bullpen was something that shocked her, it was Iron Gates walking arm in arm with her husband in the direction of the break room and looking somewhat nervous but happy. This made Beckett smile just a little, maybe things would turn out alright after all.

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Mary Cauldwell had finally fallen asleep after all the excitement of the precinct being attacked a few hours before. She had had a few panic attacks that talking to Vicky had helped with and she had once again cried herself out over her father and not know what her fate was to be now that she had no family in this country. Her biggest fear was being deported to some relative who she had never met who would try to force her to give up her Christian faith. All these thoughts had been nagging out her mind but she had finally given in to her body and fallen asleep on the break room couch.

Mary was awakened by the sound of the door opening, she quickly sat up and began rubbing the sleep from her eyes. She saw that there were two people in the room with her, one of them was Vicky, whom she knew the other was a man who was about a foot taller than Vicky and he was holding her hand.

"Mary I would like to introduce you to my husband, Marion Gates." Vicky said motioning to the man beside her.

"Pleased to meet you." Mary said as she rubbed the last of the sleep from her eyes.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, my wife has told me a lot about you and I am very sorry for your loss." The man said and, his voice was deep but gentle and kind and as he spoke he bent down onto his knees to Mary could look him in the eyes. There was a kindness in his eyes but also a strength in them, something that told Mary not only could she trust this man but she would be safe with him.

"Mary we have something we want to talk to you about." Vicky said as she joined her husband bending down in front of Mary and for the first time Mary thought the older woman sounded nervous.

"What about?" Mary asked puzzled.

"I have talked to my husband and if you would like I have cleared it with social services for you to come and live with us." Vicky said and she was still sounding very nervous.

Mary looked away for a moment and began rubbing her hands together. The truth was even if she had only known the person for half a day she would rather go with someone she knew then a complete stranger but there was so much that could go wrong and this choice would effect the rest of her life. "Is this okay with you?" She asked looking up at Mr. Gates.

"Yes, it was my idea when Vicky called me and told me that she wanted to do something to help you." Mr. Gates replied gently. "I know it will not be easy and you will have three other kids to deal with but they are okay with it too. The real question is, do you want this?"

Mary took a minute to think about it, she couldn't decided without asking a few questions, she turned to the one of the two adults she knew and trusted better. "You wouldn't expect me to change my name or anything like that will you?" She asked nervously, she always wanted to be Cauldwell, at least until she found a nice guy and got married but that wouldn't be for years.

"No, nothing like that. You will still be Mary Cauldwell, but in every other way we will treat you like one of the family." Vicky said with a sad smile.

"What about church, I think I will need to make it to church now more then ever." She asked, this was one of the things that had been nagging at her since she had figured out she would end up in a foster home, what if they didn't share her beliefs and they wouldn't let her go to church.

"We are Christians too in fact I am a pastor so I get to stay out home most of the day, that's how I raised our kids before they were school aged, and while my wife can not always make it, the kids and I get to church every week and if you don't like our church I will make sure you get to the church you grew up in." Mr. Gates replied.

"That sounds good." Mary said and she turned her head away, she was lost in thought and when she next spoke she was quiet as a church mouse trying to avoid a cat. "What if it doesn't work out?" She asked and a couple of tears began running down her face.

"Then you can go and no one will hold it against you." Vicky said as she took Mary into a hug, she then reached out and dried the teenager's tears. "But we really do want to help you and we will do our best to make you happy." Vicky promised.

Marry sniffed and then pulled away from the hug, she had made her choice. "Okay, we will try it." She said and she stood up and a second latter she was standing between the two adults. "I just need to know one thing." Mary said looking up at Mr. Gates. "What kind of a name is Marion for a boy?"

"Hey don't knock it, The Duke's real name was Marion." Mr. Gates said defensively but then added. "You can call me by my middle name, Rudolf, everyone else does."

"Who is The Duke?" Mary asked with a puzzled look on her face.

"Oh, boy." Vicky said with a sigh, you just had to ask.

"Only the greatest movie star of all time, John Wayne!" Rudolf said energetically.

"I have never heard of him." Mary said.

"Well that is hole in your education I am going to have to mend." Rudolf said with a smile and this caused Vicky to sigh rather loudly and then for the first time in a long time Mary found herself laughing. She was still extremely sad inside but she had a feeling her prayers had been answered and everything was going to work out just fine for her. There were still dark days ahead but she at last saw a chance to be happy and she knew that was what both of her parents would have wanted for her so she decided to take it. She would never forget her father or her mother but she would do her best to enjoy the new family she had been blessed with.

**Well only one more chapter to go. For people who want to see Castle and Alexis recover in depth that is what the follow up story is going to be for. I was going to make it part of this story but now that Bracken is caught this story felt like it had run out of steam so the next story will be shorter and more character focused. There are still a few things to sort out in the next chapter before we can move on so I hope you stay tuned for that.**

**Let me know what you thought of this wrap up, I hope it wasn't too long or cliched. **

**I couldn't find anything online about Gates' husband so I decided to do what I wanted with him. Hope you like it.**

**Thanks for hanging in there and sticking with me all these long months and thanks for all of the helpful feedback.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan 5 for a huge amount of help with this chapter. Thanks for sticking with me for so many months.  
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	65. Chapter 60

**CHAPTER 60**

Richard Castle was able to hold himself together long enough to watch his Ex Wife's body being hauled away in a heartless black bag. He held it together as his daughter, who was still lost in blissful sleep was moved to another room. He kept it together long enough to curse out the head of the security team that was supposed to be protecting his family at the top of his lungs. He kept it together long enough to give his statement to the local police and then take a call from his agent Paula and give her enough of those same details so she could release a statement to the press. He even kept it together long enough to let it be known that Meredith's Hollywood "friends" would not be rushing out some showy funeral for her, he would be talking to his daughter about what she wanted before doing anything on that front, she was the nearest living next of kin after all. That was when he lost control, but not in the way people expected.

When Richard Castle truly lost control and let grief over take him he didn't put on some over the top show, in fact he didn't even cry once, he just shut down. He moved to his daughter's new room, took her right hand in his and then just silently watched her, waiting for her to wake up. He hardly blinked, he just kept watching her face and when she started to stir as if she were having a nightmare he would rub her hand without a word. He didn't respond to anything else. He didn't seem to notice when his phone kept ringing off the hook, thankfully for the sanity of everyone else in the room it's battery went dead around Ten PM. He didn't respond when the nurses and doctors needed to check on his daughter, and they were just barely able to push him away for the few minutes they needed. He didn't respond when his own mother tried to comfort him. Jim Beckett even gave it a try, talking to him as one father to another but that didn't even work. He just sat in his wheelchair not speaking and refusing to take a second of rest as he held on to his daughter's hand for dear life.

This was how Kate Beckett found the writer when she finally managed to drag herself into the hospital just after midnight. Her body just wanted to collapse onto the nearest piece of furniture, she didn't care where it was or how uncomfortable it looked, she just wanted to fall over and sleep, but her heart wouldn't let her. She saw Castle and had to rush over to him. All she could do was kneel down beside him and take his head to her breasts and whisper that everything would be okay, this pulled him out of his trance.

"Oh Kate." He sobbed and those were the first words he had spoken in hours. Beckett couldn't think of anything to do so she acted on instinct and just rubbed her hand through his hair and whispered to him that everything would be alright now, they had gotten the people behind this. She knew it wasn't much but all she could think of to do was comfort the him the way she would a small child. To some people it may have seemed silly or insane since the writer was a whole decade older then the detective and he was grieving over the loss of his Ex Wife to his current girlfriend who had just been through a lot herself, but in that moment more then any other so far in their relationship Beckett felt like they were working.

He needed her and she understood that this wasn't a competition, how could it be? She didn't have anything to prove at these point and neither did he. She loved him because they understood each other, because they were alike. Both of them had made thick shells around their hearts, to protect themselves from pain, but once there were pierced they loved and felt with all of their hearts. They had both done this to protect themselves from pain brought on by their family situations, Beckett now understood this about herself and the man she was holding better then most. She had to protect herself from the pain once her mother died and he protected himself from the pain of having never known his father. She had learned how to be a street tough cop who couldn't care because it would get in the way of doing her job and he had learned how to be the life of the party because that was who people wanted to buy books from. She was only just now learning how to get past her shell and live and love because of this man, but he had clearly done it at least once before. Despite how casual he had acted about his second marriage she had seen enough of him with others that he had clearly opened his heart to, to know that he had done it before and while her first instinct a few days ago would have been to wonder what made her different, she now understood. She knew his pain and wanted to help him with it, none of the others had wanted to deal with that, they wanted the playboy and nothing else. He had been in love with them, and with the woman that had just died it had gone to the point where when she became pregnant he had wanted to start a real family with her, but they had not loved him back in the same way.

Beckett had expected all of these thoughts to make her want to pull away, run and hide to protect her own heart but she forced herself to do the opposite and just cling to him even harder. Parts of her damaged heart may have been afraid to trust him but she did what she always did on a case, she let her mind take those parts captive and let her reason and mind dictate her actions. She knew from his actions that he loved her and needed to be there for her as much as anyone. She also knew that if he were not as upset by the events of the day as he were at that moment he would not be the man that she had declared her love for on national television not even twenty-four hours before. She knew his tears were not tears of regret for not making it work with Meredith, she knew they were tears for the loss of someone he cared for and for what he knew his daughter would have to go through when she woke up. She forced the jealous part of her heart down and began building a wall around it, she choose instead to focus on the fact that he did love her and she knew she was the last woman he would ever love and he was her "One and done", there was no going back after this.

It was as these thoughts were crossing Beckett's mind that Castle let go of his daughter's hand and wrapped his arm firmly around Beckett's torso and held her firmly to his side as best he could. She knew it must be painful for him so she moved herself around and despite what doctor's orders had been let herself be pulled into his lap. At that moment neither one of them cared how painful it was either on Castle sitting in his wheelchair, or Beckett with her fresh bruises from battle that were only just now starting to become really painful. They needed to be as close to each other as they could possibly be, so they held each other like that, unaware of the passage of time. Beckett didn't even seem to care that her own father was in the room and he could see this whole display. Fortunately at some point Martha seemed to convince him that they should go check into a hotel. Jim Beckett said his goodbyes to his daughter and promised her he would be back in the morning but she didn't even look up at him. Still he left without making a scene because he seemed to understand better then anyone besides Castle what his daughter was going through.

Finally after a few hours Castle seemed to drift off to sleep. Beckett liked to think that it was the sound of her own heartbeat against his ear that had allowed him to find the peace he needed. Beckett tried to stay awake to keep an eye on the teenage girl who was in the room with them but she had been going on coffee too long and as she felt secure and loved for the first time in a long time she soon drifted off to sleep as well with her head on his shoulder.

Beckett had no idea how long they slept like that but as she was slowly dragged back to the land of the living by a loud beeping sound she felt oddly refreshed after getting so little sleep. She noticed Castle was coming alive too and when she saw why she quickly leaped out of his lap. Alexis was waking up, slowly but she was waking up and all the machines she was connected to were beeping so no one in the room could miss it. This was the moment Castle had clearly been waiting for and he watched desperately as his daughter thrashed around in the bed as best she could and called out for him. He reached over and took her hand in his and whispered words of comfort to her, this seemed to calm her.

Beckett for her part pressed the nurse call button so Castle could continue to focus all of his attention on his daughter. Soon the room was filled with doctors and nurses. At least it was filled as quickly as it could be with four men with guns frisking everyone and running hand held metal detectors over each and every person one at a time before they were allowed to enter the room.

By this point Alexis was fully awake and Castle was doing his best to try and hug his crying daughter, but the doctors were pushing him away, they needed room to work. It took both Beckett and Alexis, who had clearly retained her reasoning skills, both to convince him to wait outside.

It was as both Castle and Beckett waited outside of the room, holding each others' hands tightly and watching through the glass as the doctors spent the next couple of hours running test after test, that Beckett couldn't think of anything better to do than to bring Castle up to speed on the case. She told him everything, how Montgomery had risked his life to try and warn a woman he didn't know at the time about a threat to her life, about how her mother had chosen instead to fight for what was right and try to protect her family. Castle in turn told her about the attack and how helpless he felt and how didn't know how he was going to break the news to Alexis.

"We will do it together, I know what she will be going through." Beckett said in a comforting tone as she rubbed Castle's shoulder and then added on a more unsure note. "I mean if she wants me there. I will not make things harder on her by forcing myself into a situation where I am not wanted or needed."

Castle then looked up at her with sad, yet grateful eyes. "Trust me Beckett, you are both wanted and needed. I don't think I could do this without you. Thank you."

"Always." Beckett whispered and they watched and Alexis' bed was wheeled out of the room past them. All they were told was that she needed more tests and would be back in about an hour.

"I'll be okay dad." Alexis assured her father but Castle knew that wouldn't be the truth for long. Still he didn't want to add to her stress so instead he just plastered on a smile and nodded and held onto Beckett's hand as they both watched and waited.

It was a little while later when Castle next spoke. "I don't want you to think I am in mourning because I really loved Meredith." He said somewhat nervously as he looked up at the detective.

"I don't. I understand." Beckett said with all the strength she could muster at that moment. She really didn't want to be talking about this at that moment but clearly Castle felt the need to clear the air before the next crisis in his personal life broke.

"Good." Castle said taking a breath and then in perfect keeping with his track record over the past three years he said a little too much. "Because I know we used to hook up from time to time but that wasn't because I still loved her."

"Really then why was it?" Beckett asked crossing her arms in front of her chest. The detective wasn't really mad and she knew this was the worst time and place to be sorting this out but after being reminded of this fact that she had pushed to the back of her mind she suddenly felt the need for answers.

"I don't know." Castle answered honestly and a look of shame passed over his face. "I never have been able to figure out why after what she did she was always able to get back into my bed and I was happy about it. I know I used the deep fried twinkie excuse and that was part of it but I have no idea what the whole story was."

Beckett thought about this for a minute and she had to ask a question, she knew it was selfish but she needed an answer. "What about me?" He looked hurt when she said this and she wanted to make things right but she also needed to hear something that she knew in her heart was true pass his lips so she continued to press. "Will I just become another deep fried twinkie at some point? How do you know this will last? I am all in but this is an awful way to start a relationship and maybe you will find that I am no better for you then she was or you are too confused to know what you need. That is not something I can live with so if that is how it is going to turn out I need you to tell me now, because I will not go any farther into whatever we have here if there is a chance that is how it is going to turn out. I understand you are in pain but if you care about me at all you will figure out what you want and tell me, I am not about to let myself become yet another Ex-Girlfriend or whatever you call your _Deep fried Twinkies._" Beckett tried to keep her tone as gentle as possible while still remaining firm so that the writer would know she meant business. She had too much self respect and too much invested in this relationship, or whatever it was, to risk becoming yet another name on a long list.

"Kate." Castle said looking up at the detective and she could tell he was serious because he was using her first name and he almost never did that. "If I just wanted to get you into bed or thought this wouldn't last I would have gotten you into bed within the first few weeks we worked together."

Beckett couldn't help the smile that broke across her lips at this. Cocky playboy Rick Castle was not a complete act, it was part of the complete package she was in love with, and even in a situation like this that side of her boyfriend couldn't be kept completely down. What was more instinct told her she had to respond to this with a flirt. "You seem very sure of yourself there Kitten." She shot back, and the second the last part passed her lips she wanted to take it back as she remembered who had come up with that stupid pet name in the first place. However Castle didn't give her a chance, there had been a playfulness to her tone of voice when she said it that had been missing for a long time and it heated up Castle's blood and caused him to respond in kind.

"See that is a perfect example." He said and he was becoming more cocky by the minute. "When you agreed that you owed me I could see it in your eyes, I had you. You wanted me to take you out and give you the best night you had ever had, but I didn't. I just asked you never to call me that again."

"If I had wanted you that night, I would have had you. You can't resist me." Beckett fired back as she stepped closer to the chair and there was a sway to her hips as she did so.

"But I did and that means something." Castle said firmly as he returned to business, this caused Beckett to put on a mock pout, it seemed play time was over.

"What does that mean?" Beckett asked a moment later as she gave herself a moment to switch gears and return to asking serious questions, the answers to which would effect the course that the rest of her life would take.

"It means that even back then I knew that what I felt for you was stronger then anything I had ever felt for a woman." Castle said earnestly and Beckett had to turn away from this because it was all a little too much. "Hey I need you to look at me while I try to explain this, I have wrecked every relationship I have ever had because I am not good with this sort of thing."

"Well there is something we at least have in common." Beckett said with a snort as she forced herself to return her attention to the man sitting in front of her.

"I guess but that is not my point." Castle said quickly and then looked her straight in the eyes as he said his next words. "I felt more for you then than I ever felt for the women who I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with and make a family with. I couldn't even understand what I was feeling at that point, all I knew was I couldn't stand the thought of screwing it up and even if it meant that you were seeing other guys who were better then me outside of work, I still needed to see you every day at work and I wanted you to be happy."

These words floored Beckett and she wanted to cry but she still had one last question she had to ask. "Is that why you opened my mother's case, was it to impress me or because you wanted to see me happy?"

Castle let out a sigh, clearly he wasn't expecting this question but he decided that he had to answer it as honestly as he could. "To be honest my first thought was of impressing you." He saw a disappointed look cross over Beckett's face so he quickly added to his explanation. "But there was always a part of me that knew you would never be able to be happy or have the types of relationships you clearly wanted until this case was solved. You told me you were a _One and done type girl_, and yet I kept finding these relationship you had been in where you clearly didn't love the guys and at that point you seemed to be refusing to look for The One and yet you were so lonely. You didn't want this case messing up your chance and yet you were not taking any steps to solve it. Knowing how much of my life I had squandered and how I felt about that, I wanted to free you from the burden so you would have the freedom to have a life with whom ever you chose. Even if it wasn't me." Castle then paused for a breath, he had not intended to make a speech but it had all just come pouring out of him all at once.

Beckett turned away and took a moment to think about this and then she turned back to him with a tear in her eye. "And now after everything it has cost you do you still think you did the right thing?"

"I regret going behind your back and what it did to Alexis and so many others, but if I had it to do all over again, even knowing the cost I would still do what I did in order to set you free." Castle insisted firmly and Beckett could see it was true.

"I think I would have done the same for you." Beckett said wiping a tear from her eye. "Where do we go from here?" She asked, she wanted to get this conversation over with.

"Honestly if it were up to me I would make this real as soon as I could." Castle said as he held up his hand, he had forgotten to take the fake wedding band that had been part of their cover IDs off. Castle then saw a worried look on Beckett's face so he quickly added. "I know it is too soon and we have too much to deal with right now but you are the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with."

"You are right, it is too soon if we don't want to screw this up." Beckett said firmly but then she surprised Castle by bending down and kissing him and that one little kiss contained all the pent up emotions of the past day or so since they had last been together. "Let's just call them engagement rings." Becket whispered to a shocked Castle. "No date or pressure or anything. Just a promise that neither one of us is leaving and when the time is right and we have put all of this behind us we will make it official."

"Why detective Beckett I never thought I would see the day when you would propose to me." Castle said in a teasing tone of voice.

"Technically I think you proposed first when you said you wanted to make the rings real, I was just accepting." Beckett said returning his tease.

"No way, you are the one that said we should call what we have an engagement." Castle shot back, not willing to lose.

"Yeah well just remember to watch yourself writer boy, or this will be the shortest engagement in history." Beckett said as she positioned herself in Castle's lap and bent down for another kiss.

"Just wait till I get out of this chair and I will show you what a _boy _I am!" Castle said with mock offense in his voice and then he grabbed Beckett's head and brought her in for another fierce kiss.

Just as Beckett pulled away from the kiss to catch her breath they both heard the sound of footsteps and a hospital bed being pushed down the hall. Beckett quickly jumped up and had just finished regaining some form of composure and straightening her hair when they saw the doctors returning with Alexis' bed and she didn't look nearly as happy as she had when she had left for the scans. This concerned Castle but Alexis was placed back in her room before he could say anything and then one of the doctors, a middle aged woman of about five and a half feet with short brown hair came walking up to him.

"Mr. Castle I am Dr. Tolas, I am in over all charge of your daughter's case." The woman said introducing herself.

"How is she?" Castle asked and there was fear in his voice.

"Well what I am about to tell you is for family only." Dr. Tolas said and Beckett was just turning to leave when Castle caught her by the arm.

"She is family." Castle insisted and Beckett let the statement wash over her, it felt refreshing and comforting to know that she was no longer Kate Beckett a woman completely on her own, she was now part of a family.

"Okay." Dr. Tolas said and then she began to explain things. "The first thing you need to know is that your daughter is not as badly hurt as we thought she would be. She should make a full recovery as long as her arm is kept in the cast and she goes easy on her rib and she should be able to leave her by the end of the week. Now she you need to understand that nothing is ever a sure thing when it comes to the human brain and she will need weekly check ups for a while and you should keep an eye on her. However we have yet to find anything that indicates that she will not be able to recover from this. So while nothing is sure, it looks good over all."

"Well that's good." Castle said letting out a sigh of relief.

"However there was some damage to the brain." Dr. Tolas reported gravely and then cause Castle to begin to tear up.

"How much?" Beckett asked quietly, afraid that her worst fears had come to pass.

"Please remember that this is still much better then we thought it would be." Dr. Tolas said trying to reassure both Castle and Beckett.

"Damn it, just tell me how bad my daughter is!" Castle snapped and his face turned red.

"Fortunately there doesn't seem to be any damage to her memory, reasoning, or language centers of her brain at all so she should be able to do school work and have a mostly normal life." Dr. Tolas reported trying to ease the father who sat in front of her into the bad news.

"What do you mean mostly?" Castle asked quietly.

"Well there is no easy was to say this but the damage around her left eye and that section of her brain was too bad to be repaired completely. I am afraid that while she has perfect vision in her right eye, her left only has about twenty percent vision. This means that she is legally blind and will never be able to do things such as drive a car or operate machines like that." Castle let out a sob at this and Beckett had to cover her mouth with her hand, this was all too much. Still the doctor tried to keep them looking at the bright side. "Still she will be able to do everything else with her life, she just will not be able to see most things out of her left eye. In these cases we find that if the caretakers keep their spirits up young people her age do adjust well and will lead happy and productive lives. It just may take a while."

"Does she know?" Castle asked as he pulled himself together for his daughter.

"We didn't want to tell her until we talked to you but Alexis is a very smart girl and she figured it out herself. I am sorry if you think it was the wrong thing to do but once she started to panic and ask questions I felt stonewalling would do more harm then good." Dr. Tolas explained nervously.

"Thank you Doctor, you did the right thing." Castle said after giving the mater a moment of thought. "You are right once she figured it out waiting to tell me would have only made things worse." He then added a question. "Can we see her now?"

"Yes, she looks like she is settled in." Dr. Tolas replied and Castle nodded gratefully.

"Do you still want me with you?" Beckett asked looking down at Castle.

"More then ever, I still need to tell her that her mother is dead before she hears about it on the internet or TV and you give me strength. I meant what I said, you are family." Castle said looking up at the detective.

"I fell the same way about you." Beckett said placing a hand on the writer's shoulder and then she and Castle went into the hospital room side by side to have the hardest conversation they would ever have to have. It was just after four in the morning and Alexis Castle's world was about to be turned upside down for the second time that day.

**Okay here is the thing I know I said this would be the last chapter but then this one kind of got away from me. I know some people just need this story to be over and I have rambled on in places but the characters wouldn't stop thinking or speaking so this one ended up long and it didn't really seem to work with another half of a chapter.**

**The real last chapter will be posted tomorrow, sorry this one got away from me. Oh and if anyone asks I will be trying to watch this season of Castle but the video capture card on my computer just died and I don't have the money to replace it so if I am not awake at ten I will miss the episode so sorry if I post anything in this or the two follow up stories that doesn't comply with something that happens in the new season, but that is fan fiction for you.**

**Oh and the follow up stories after the last chapter of this one will deal with Alexis' feelings on the death of her mother and her legal blindness.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing and sticking with this story even when I ramble on a chapter gets away from me.**

**Last chapter coming tomorrow, I hope you like it and think it is good.**

**Thanks to Caskettfan5 for a huge amount of help with this chapter, it's is massively improved because of it. **

**Oh and the first chapter of the next story in the series is coming today or tomorrow. I have gotten a little sidetracked preparing for my mother's birthday(I don't know how but it took me by surprise this year and I didn't remember it was coming until late last week)but it is coming, sorry for the wait.**


	66. Chapter 61

**CHAPTER 61**

"So I see they told you. I guess it's a good thing I live in New York and the bright side is I will never have to try and find a parking space." Alexis Castle said with a forced cheer as she looked up from her hospital bed at the two depressed looking adults who had just entered her hospital room hand in hand.

Castle noticed that the nurses had moved all the machines and the IV and medication drips so that they were now on Alexis' left hand side so visitors could approach her on the side of her good eye. He also noticed that someone had even been thoughtful enough to move the chair that normally sat beside the hospital bed to the other side of the room, so he could pull his wheelchair right up next to his daughter's bad. He didn't know who had been so thoughtful but it made what he had to do next easier. He would have to get the nurses a fruit basket or something. His mind was pulled away from such thoughts as he finished pulling his wheelchair up beside Alexis' bed. He had positioned himself so he could touch her hand while facing her and as he took in her bandaged form and he looked into her eyes, he wanted to cry. Then he felt Beckett's hand on his shoulder and that gave him strength. Beckett had gotten through this and come out of it an amazing person, he knew his daughter could as well.

"I am so sorry you had to go through this." Was all he could bring himself to say at first.

"Dad, it's okay. I am alive and so are you and Grams, that is the important thing." Alexis said earnestly as she gripped her father's hand hard. In truth she was angry and sad and just wanted to throw a fit about all the things she would never be able to do in her life, but she knew her father would blame himself so she had decided that she wasn't going to do that, at least not with him around. This was the fault of the monsters who had tried to kill her family and no one else and she wasn't going to make her dad's recovery any more difficult by adding guilt on top of it. Not being able to see much out of her left eye was hard and she knew it would take some getting used to, but for now she could stay strong and try to remember that there were a lot of people out there who were worse off than her.

"Pumpkin, you don't have to pretend around me. I know you must be mad and in shock and I want you to know it's not going to hurt me if you act the way you feel." Castle said in a gentle but firm parental tone that then became more grave. "especially since I have something to tell you that is going to be very hard to hear." He knew it was only a matter of time before his daughter either fell asleep again or checked the internet on her phone and saw the news story so he had to tell her about the death of her mother soon.

"Alexis I know this is going to be one of the hardest things you will ever go through but I want you to know that I will be here for you and no matter what you need I want you to come to me if you feel you need it." Beckett said in a gentle tone as she stepped around Castle's wheelchair to get closer to Alexis and placed a comforting hand on the teenage girl's shoulder.

"What's going on?" A worried Alexis asked looking from one adult to the other. "Is there something else wrong with me that the doctors didn't tell me about? Am I dying?" She asked and her voice raised as a note of panic hit it on the last question.

"No, you are not dying and apart from your eye you are fine." Castle assured his daughter.

"Well is it something to do with you?" Alexis asked looking at her father's face. "I don't remember you having those bruises before and why is your nose all bandaged up?"

"I'll be okay. Everything will heal, it's just my nose may be a little crooked from now on." Castle said and he tried to sound glib so that his daughter would stop panicking but he didn't like how easily he had been pulled off of the topic at hand. He needed to come right out and say it. "Alexis I need you to listen to me carefully and I need you to know that whatever your reaction is, it is okay." Castle instructed.

"You should also know that you are safe now, we arrested Bracken and everyone who works for him, so you don't have to worry about your safety any more. No one is ever going to hurt you or your family again." Beckett piped in, she didn't know if this would help much but at least Alexis would know she was safe.

"Yes, you are completely safe now." Castle nodded in agreement with Beckett and then he got onto the hard part. "Your mother came to visit you yesterday while you were asleep." Castle began.

"I had a dream she was here and crying, all I wanted to do was tell her I was alright but I couldn't do anything." Alexis said as she looked down at her lap, becoming lost in thought.

"That wasn't a dream she was here." Castle said gently.

"Let me guess she took off to a film shoot or something before I was able to wake up." Alexis said and she was trying to sound as if she didn't care but there was a hint of bitterness in her tone of voice. "It's okay dad, that is who she is and it's not your fault."

"No, she didn't take off." Castle said and he had to look away from his daughter to draw up the courage needed to give her the next piece of news.

"Then I don't understand, where is she?" Alexis asked and she was becoming worried again.

"You need to know that she wanted me to tell you that she loved you and she was wrong, she said you should have been number one in her life before now." Castle said looking up at his daughter once again and his eyes had a sadness to them that his daughter had rarely seen, but he thought it was important that he deliver Meredith's last message to their daughter.

"Why can't she tell me herself, did something happen to her, will someone please tell me what is going on?" Alexis demanded and she was becoming angry with all the stalling.

"Well there is no easy way to say this but your mother is dead." Castle said in a hushed tone.

At this news Alexis broke down and began to cry and Castle was glad Beckett had agreed to help him because in his current position in his wheelchair he couldn't do more then hold his daughter's hand but Beckett held the girl's head to her shoulder and ran a comforting hand up and down her back. Saying anything didn't seem right so the two adults just stayed by the teenager's side and comforted her. Finally after about an hour she seemed all cried out and as Beckett helped her blow her nose and wipe her tears she turned to her father to ask a question. "How did it happen?"

Telling this story was the hardest thing Castle had ever had to do and he told it with a lot of sudden stops and pauses but he got through it. He told his daughter everything, how he had gotten the bruises from the fight with the two thugs, how her mother had shot one of them but not before she herself was stabbed and killed. He made sure his daughter understood just how much her mother had loved her in her final moments. This brought on a fresh wave of tears and all three people in the room held on to each other for dear life. That was how they were found when Jim Beckett and Martha Rodgers entered the room a few hours latter with coffee cups in hand. Alexis let the adults pull away from her and remained somewhat calm as they drank their coffee. Her grandmother took over for Beckett hugging her but still no words were exchanged.

Alexis finally broke the silence a few minutes later and when she did her voice was quiet and yet sad. "I guess the funeral is going to be a big production and I will not be out of here in time for it." She observed.

"Not if you don't want it to be." Castle said firmly and Alexis looked at him confused so he explained. "You are the next of kin and I already had my lawyer make sure everyone knows that you will be in charge of that. It will not happen until you are out of here and you just tell me what you want and I will make it happen."

"Okay." Alexis said quietly and then she seemed to take a moment to think about it and then she spoke up. "I want something small where there will not be a lot of Hollywood people and actors, I want something where I don't have to worry about being seen by the press like this." Alexis then reached up and ran her hand over her bald and bandaged head.

"Alexis, pumpkin it will grow back." Her father reassured her.

"I know and I know it is silly but I really don't want to be seen until it does. In fact I really don't want to go back to New York or anywhere with people right now. I just want to go somewhere quiet, bury my mom and deal with things." Alexis said and then she leaned back on her pillow, she was clearly tired and no one was sure what to say.

"I understand." Beckett said looking down at the girl. "I think I have the perfect answer?"

"You do?" Alexis asked and her mood seemed to lift a little. "Yeah I don't go back to work until the fall so we have all summer to deal with things."

"That's great." Alexis said with a yawn.

Beckett then turned to her father. "Dad do you still have the wheelchair ramp you built at your cabin up near Cider Creek."

"Sure do, some of the guest rooms may need clean sheets and a few nails pounded into them, but there is room for everyone since it was built for family gatherings and there is good fishing up there and the nearest neighbor is two miles away. Also it is registered in my cousin's name but he hasn't been on the east coast in ten years so it is unlikely the press would be able to track us down there." Jim Beckett explained brightly, he knew what a sad time this was but he saw where his daughter was going and he was glad he could finally prove to be of some help to the people who had done so much to bring his daughter back to him.

Beckett turned to Castle. "Castle you said you would take me anywhere once this is done, that is where I want you to take me. The family cabin." Beckett said turning to her fiance and just thinking about him in that way for the first time sent a chill down her spine and it seemed to do the same to him as all he could do was smile and nod that he agreed.

"Oh and I just remembered there is a small church in the village with a yard where we could bury Alexis' mother and we wouldn't be disturbed by the press or anyone else." Jim Beckett said and this time he seemed a little more sad.

"Alexis does this sound okay to you, it is alright if you want something different." Beckett said gently as she looked down at the girl who was clearly having trouble staying awake.

"You are sure you don't mind us all coming up there Mr. Beckett?" Alexis asked turning her attention to the oldest man in the room.

"No, of course not. You're family, and please call me Jim." Jim he said reassuringly. He may have failed his own daughter in her time of need but he wasn't going to fail the people who had helped undo the damage that he had done to his daughter. If Alexis Castle needed peace and quiet to get through this hard time then peace and quiet would be what she got.

"Then that sounds perfect." Alexis said with a yawn and a moment later she was out like a light.

Beckett took a moment to think about her father's words. They were a family now and it was because of that she was sure Alexis would handle things better then she had. Bracken may have left scars on all of them but he couldn't take away the love that she felt between everyone in that room in that moment and his selfishness and hate had been no match for what they could do when they all pulled together. Yes they would always remember the pain, but Castle had showed her that pain could and would fade over time and you couldn't let it stop you from making the happy memories that would be your future. That was something else she and everyone in that room had that Bracken didn't, a future. So while he had done his damage Beckett knew they would all be okay in the end because they had each other. Yes life had thrown her a few curve balls but at least one of them she had turned into a home run, she never would have guessed the first time that when she brought Castle in for questioning that he would bring peace and joy back into her life, but he had and she wasn't going to squander it. She was going to get through the next few hard months and then return to work helping people because that was who she was, only now she knew she would always have a family she could count on by her side and that felt good.

**The End**

**Well I hope you liked this wrap up and thank you to everyone who stuck with this story and gave me feedback on it. You guys kept me writing through some very depressing times.**

**I will of course be posting corrections to this chapter later on but for now I am marking the story as complete.**

**Don't worry this isn't the end of the Verse and the next story will be shorter and more fun and I will post the first chapter latter this week. However chapters for that story will only come once a week so I have time to work on my novels that I want to get out by the end of the year.**

**I wouldn't be able to write them without the help and support of all of you here, I have become a much better writer because of all of you. You guys are the best.**

**If you liked this keep an eye out for The Legend of Cider Creek, the next story in the series.**

**Thanks again to Caskettfan5 for so much help with this story and to everyone who left feedback in any form. All of you were a huge help. **

**Thanks again Castkettfan5 for putting up with all of my mistakes and pointing out plot holes I missed, you are the best.**

**The next story is coming today or tomorrow, hope you enjoy it.**


	67. Good News Everyone!

**Good news Everyone!**

**I know it has been years but I am finally able to continue with all of my Mass Effect and Castle stories. I am right now editing all of the many mistakes I made in all of them and posting a Let's Play on Youtube of all three Games that's play through is as close to the background of the Shepard in my stories as I can get.**

**I know it has been years so I don't expect anyone to still be following my stories and I know I let you all down but I just thought I would give you this update. I hope to have all these stories edited and to start posting new chapters of both my unfinished stories, including this one some time in the next month but if Christmas gets in the way it will be early in the new year but the first week of 2016 is the farthest I will let it slip.**

**Well hope you enjoy these stories and sorry my blockage and other problems got in the way up if anyone is still following thanks for reading, I hope to have something posted that is worth the wait soon.**

**Now for the shameless plug, if you look for my user name here on facebook or youtube you can find me on both of those places. I am almost done with my Let's Play of the first Mass Effect.**

**Well any way I am feeling better then I have in years and I hope you enjoy the rest of my stories. I will be alternating between this story and my other unfinished stories and posting new chapters every day.**

**Sorry for the long wait and that it is going to be a little longer but I want to get the old chapters fixed before I post new ones, plus I am having a lot of fun playing with the video editing software on my computer right now.**

**Well I hope you are all well and Thanks for reading this.**


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